


The Princess and the Sparrow

by Webdog177



Category: Maria-sama ga Miteru
Genre: Adult Life, F/F, Post-Canon, aaaaaaaaaangst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-12
Updated: 2018-03-13
Packaged: 2019-03-30 12:06:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 118,773
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13951221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Webdog177/pseuds/Webdog177
Summary: Nine years after graduating from Lillian and breaking up with Sachiko, Yumi meets someone that completely shakes up her carefully reconstructed life. Can she get over her past and look to the future? Or will the shadow from her memories





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Maria-sama Ga Miteru. I own nothing but my own thoughts. Which is dangerous sometimes... *Dun dun DUN!*
> 
> A/N: A word about this: This story takes place a full 8-9 years AFTER the Yamayurikai crew have graduated Lillian. So, Yumi is 27, and assorted characters are their respective ages nine years after MariMite.
> 
> Hope you enjoy the first chapter!

  **The Princess and the Sparrow**

_Chapter 1_

0 - 0 - 0

**Part 1**

"Thank you for waiting. Here is your order." The young-looking girl in a barista uniform said with a smile, handing a paper cup full of dark steaming liquid out to be picked up. Yumi Fukuzawa stepped up to the counter and retrieved the drink, matching the younger girl's smile.

"Thank you very much." Yumi said and backed away from the pick-up counter, making room for an older man to pick up the pair of matching drinks he had ordered.

Making her way towards the corner of the café she frequented at least a few times a week, Yumi set her briefcase, purse, and coffee on the table and slid down into one of the plushy, cream-colored booths alongside the table surface. After making sure she was comfortably settled, she clasped one hand around the warm paper cup, letting the heat seep into her chilled fingers. With her other hand, she retrieved her mobile phone from her coat pocket.

"Now," She mumbled to herself as she keyed the phone to life. "Who texted me?" The clear, brightly colored screen flicked from one background to another as Yumi brought up her messages. There weren't all that many. A few from Yoshino Shimazu, her best friend from Lillian Academy for Women when they both attended there; a handful of messages from Yoshino's cousin, Rei Hasekawa; and one from Shimako Toudou, another friend from school. Finally, at the top of the list, there was a long thread of messages from Touko Matsudaira. Even after a full nine years after graduating high school, Yumi and her old student council friends were still as close as always.

Yumi flicked the screen up to new messages and screwed her face in slight annoyance. "Yuuki…" She sighed. Her brother never really had anything interesting to say when they talked. When he did send her messages or call her, it was usually about business of some sort.  _At least,_  she thought ruefully,  _it was presumably business related...if his writing ever improved._  Expanding the message, Yumi shook her head in amusement as she realized she had been correct in her thinking.

_Yumi,_

_Anuther clint wnts 2 hve meating about new desine skeem. Lemme no when iz a gud time 2 schedul sumethin._

_Yuuki_

"Yumi…" She read off from the message, trying to decipher what her brother was really saying. "Another client wants to have a meeting about the new design scheme. Let me know when is a good time to schedule something." Blinking a few times as she read off the small screen, Yumi couldn't help but sigh in irritation.

Honestly, how old was he?

Her brother's texts were always horrible in grammar, spelling and full of contractions. Not only that, it was clearly done on purpose. Luckily though, he knew better than to do that for business emails or with clients. Only with Yumi did he email like that. She didn't know whether to feel pleased or annoyed. Annoyed, most likely.

Hovering her thumb over the reply toggle, Yumi pursed her lips in thought. She  _could_  reply her brother now. But with her nice, hot coffee threatening to cool down and ruin the rest of her day…

She shook her head and keyed off her phone, shoving it back into her coat pocket. Yuuki-baka could keep for another hour, couldn't he?

With a long sigh, Yumi leaned back in her booth and cradled her other hand around her cup. She lifted it to her lips and took a tentative sip. It was scalding; but on a cold day in the middle of January, it was well worth the near-burn she had just now suffered. "I like coffee, I like tea…" She sang softly to herself as she let the steam fog up the lenses of her glasses. "I want coffee to sleep with me."

Stifling a laugh at her own impromptu song, Yumi cast her eyes around the café, taking in the quiet atmosphere of the small restaurant. She had first visited the establishment more than a year ago, and while the employees and regulars changed on occasion, she still liked to spend a few hours there a week. What with her 'busy' daily life, it was all she could do to relax every other day nursing a coffee… some tea and cakes… or sometimes a sandwich as she watched the fuzzy outlines of snow lazily fall outside through the frosted windows.

She had been lucky to stumble across this particular spot. On a day not much more than a year ago, she had been meandering around aimlessly on an equally cold day. As she rounded a corner, the small, yet attractively-designed building filled her vision. At once, Yumi's architect senses tingled, and she knew it was love at first sight. The fact that Yumi found the café visually pleasing beckoned her to enter, and the friendly, intimate feeling of the business let her come again.

At first, she had considered bringing her friends with her to the café. She knew Yoshino and Shimako, and Rei in particular with the girl's love of cute things and small eateries would have loved the place. But something told Yumi to keep the knowledge of the café to herself and herself alone. It would be her place of peace and quiet. A place where no matter how bad things got in her life, she would be able to relax and think.

No matter how bad things got…

Yumi pursed her lips and shook her head. No. She wouldn't think about that now. She had done exceptionally well the past year, and she was determined to keep it that way.

Taking another sip of coffee, Yumi slid off her glasses and, setting them softly on the table, let her eyes drift out towards the window beside her. She couldn't see outside of it, of course… not with the huge difference in temperatures fogging up the glass. Instead, she let her eyes focus on the condensation building up on her side of the window. To her eyes it looked as though she were staring into thick, white clouds.

Truth be told, her eyes were not all that bad. At twenty-seven years old, Yumi was proud to say that her eyesight was better than the majority of the Japanese people. But, considering she was an architect, and she spent the majority of her working hours hunched over a drafting table staring at lines and small measurements, eyeglasses sort of came with the territory.

Slowly, Yumi reached out with her index finger and pressed it to the cold, frosty glass of the window. In a simple motion, she drew a line in the moisture on the glass surface. Pursing her lips, she drew another line, intersecting the first. Then she drew another. And then another. And another. Soon, a solid picture began to take shape in the window, forming the outline of a simple one-story building. Her first line had already begun to fade away as she returned her hand to the warmth of her coffee cup.

Yumi allowed herself a small smile, watching her spontaneous creation fade away into the moisture on the window. If she were to meet herself as a teenager, she would have not really expected that she would have become an architect, as her father was. As a girl, she had never really given any thought to what she would do or what she would be. She simply 'was'.

Yumi's teen years in Lillian Academy for Women, middle school and high school divisions both, had been much the same. She didn't really know what she wanted to do or even what she was good at. Remembering one time as a second year high school student, she told a room full of first year girls that she was most proud of her 'average-ness'. Now that she was older, she couldn't help but laugh at that instance.

Actually, those three years spent in Lillian high school division had been perhaps one of the most influential times of her life. She had met her friends there. Yoshino… Shimako… Rei… Touko… She had joined the student council there; become the student council president in her third year alongside those friends. She had spent many fun and memory-filled days there.

She had also met  _her_  there.

Not able to keep the shiver that crept up her spine at the thought, Yumi clenched her coffee cup tightly in her hands, though not tightly enough as to spill her still-hot drink. Determined as she was to avoid that particular line of thought, memories of Lillian were most assuredly going to dredge it up from the depths of her mind.

Nevertheless, her rose-colored days in high school had to end sometime. In the wake of her youth ending, her future loomed ever-more closely in her steps. What would she do? What kind of person would she come to be? All of these things Yumi had never thought about prior to graduating. When it had finally dawned on her that she was pushed into the deep end of life and forced to paddle for herself, it was almost too much for her to take.

In the end, it had been because of her friends and family she had persevered and decided to go to school for architectural design. Forgoing the choice of Lillian University for her studies, Yumi chose a school at her friends' and father's suggestion. It had been hard; those years in university. While the coursework itself was simple enough, the act of 'being' was the difficult part.

After all that had happened after high school and during university, Yumi was shocked that she even survived it all to. No. Shocked wasn't the right word.  _Thankfu_ l was more appropriate. Thankful for everyone that stood by her and didn't abandon her in her darkest moments.

Lifting up her cup of coffee for a drink, Yumi put her mouth on the lip of the drink and tilted her head back-

Only to find that no coffee was left.

Blinking rapidly for a long moment, she stared at her drained cup, a somewhat familiar feeling of unease creeping through her mind. Obviously, she had finished her drink while thinking of times past. The taste of French Roast in her mouth was evidence enough. But the fact that she couldn't remember drinking any of it was eerie in and of itself.

"Again, huh?" She mumbled to herself softly. It wasn't the first time that had happened, and it wouldn't be the last. She would have to let Touko know later.

Pushing herself to her feet, Yumi picked up her purse and briefcase. After putting her glasses back on and making sure her used cup was properly disposed of in the garbage, Yumi took one last look around the small café. There were a few people by themselves; reading, typing away on a computer… a few couples chatting quietly amongst themselves… no one took more than a second glance as Yumi walked towards the front door.

As she opened and closed the door behind her, a small flurry of wind and snow blew in, emitting a cheery jingle from the pair of bells tied to the knob.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 2**

Yumi heard her phone buzzing lightly on her dresser as she stepped out of her attached bathroom, a light blue towel wrapped around her body and another around her head. Turning towards the dull rattling sound, she walked over to the blinking phone. She peered down at the display while moving the towel around her head in random directions. It would dry quickly, and at the same time give her hair a good tousle.

What did she care if her hair was a mess? She was home for the night anyway.

The name 'Touko Matsudaira' appeared on her phone's display, along with the accompanying number and area code. Yumi shot a glace up at her wall clock, more out of habit than any real need. She vaguely knew what time it was; Touko made it a point to call Yumi around eight thirty most nights. Tonight, she was making the call at eight thirty-seven.

After weighing the decision to pick up the call or continue to dry herself off, Yumi decided on the latter. She knew Touko would be more understanding than her brother had been earlier that day. Yumi had ended up returning his message a full three hours after he had sent it. He had been quite put out, much to Yumi's bemusement.

Serves him right for using such horrible Japanese in his messages.

After making sure her light brown hair was at least partially dry, Yumi tossed her head-towel onto her bed and picked up her phone. She walked over to the edge of the bed and sat down, keying her now-darkened phone back to life. It was now eight forty-two; a good time to call back Touko.

Yumi tapped the screen of her phone and pressed it to her ear. As she listened to the quiet dial tone, Yumi took a fleeting glance around her room. Her bed, her dresser, a portable drafting table (the larger one was located in her home office), the door to the bathroom and the door into the hallway… aside from a few other assorted furnishings and some clothing scattered around, the room was perfectly bare and practical. The only things that really stood out where a collection of photographs on a bulletin board above her bed.

The photos were assorted pictures of herself, her family and her friends, all in different locations and times. There was a large amount, but it was almost expected of someone like Yumi, who liked to collect pictures of family and friends.

Just as she was considering if her room was actually missing anything, a familiar voice took the place of the ringing in Yumi's ear.

"This is Touko Matsudaira. Who may I ask is calling?"

Yumi smiled to herself at Touko's voice. The young woman knew exactly who was calling. For all her prim properness, the girl loved to be coy. "Hello Touko. It's Yumi."

"Ah. Good evening, Onee-sama. How are you feeling?"

"Very well, thank you." Yumi replied truthfully. Hearing her 'little sister's' voice  _did_  always lighten her mood. "I'm sorry I didn't pick up before. I was in the shower."

There was a moment of silence. Then- "I assumed so. It's no problem. How has your day been?"

"It was fine. I spent the morning on the new draft. After lunch I went out for a walk. Yuuki wanted to schedule something like a meeting… but then he got all huffy at me calling him back so late." Yumi relayed the details of his message and her response, eliciting a small laugh from Touko.

It all was pretty scripted, Yumi knew, as she told the younger girl more about her afternoon. Touko would call Yumi in the evening and ask what she did that day. She would talk for a while about what she did, and then ask Touko about her's. Touko would then talk for a bit, all while Yumi listened as attentively as she could. It had been going on this way for a couple years, ever since Yumi had graduated university. She knew exactly why Touko wanted to talk with her so often, and that made her all the more thankful to the younger girl.

"Wow… it sounds like you will be busier than ever." Yumi said into her phone. She heard Touko's sigh and imagined the young woman tugging at her bangs in slight annoyance; a habit she had picked up a number of years ago.

"More or less. But that doesn't matter. If you ever need me, Onee-sama, all you need to do is ask. You are more important."

"More important than a hospital full of patients?" Yumi had to resist a disbelieving snort. Touko was still pursuing her double degrees in medicine and psychology, and therefore was not so much a doctor as she was part-custodian to her grandparent's hospital. Touko's family, when she graduated from Lillian, had agreed to let her take over the hospital when she got her medial doctorate. Until then, her grandfather would keep the hospital running and wait for her to finish. Touko attended school full time for a double doctorate as well as work at the hospital, gaining as much experience as she can.

 _That and take care of me in her off hours…_  The thought sent Yumi's mind into a darker place. As quickly as it had happened, though, Touko's voice cut through the fog of her mind like a knife.

"You know the answer to that, Onee-sama." Her voice was quiet, but that didn't make it any less serious. "You know how important you are to me."

"… I know." Yumi said after a long moment. "I'm sorry."

"It's quite alright." She could practically hear Touko shrug. "Well, anything else you want to talk about?" Yumi opened her mouth to say no when another thought occurred to her. She had forgotten about it until just now.

"Actually, yes. I… I blacked out again today."

There was silence on the other line for a few long seconds.

"I see."

"But, it wasn't really a black out. I just kind of… zoned out I guess? I kind of felt like I blacked out, but without the blacking out part." It even sounded silly to Yumi. But Touko's voice came back as serious as ever.

"I think I understand. What were you doing at the time?"

"I was drinking a coffee in-" Yumi hesitated for a moment. Even though Touko was essentially her little sister, Yumi wasn't quite ready to share her special place with her just yet. "-In a coffee house this afternoon. I was thinking, holding a full cup of coffee, and when I realized it, it was all gone. I didn't really remember drinking it all."

"Were… were you thinking about…" Touko trailed off, knowing Yumi would pick up on her meaning.

Touko meant if she were thinking about  _her_.

"No… well, not really." Yumi admitted quietly. "I was actually thinking of the old days at Lillian. All of us, you know? So I guess she was there too, yea?"

"I see. Do you want to schedule an appointment with Doctor Kimigura?"

Yumi pursed her lips. She had just seen Emi Kimigura two weeks ago. She usually met with her psychologist once a month, give or take a week. It was just a little soon to visit again.

"No. I think it can wait another week or two. What do you think?"

Touko was silent for a few moments on the other line before answering. "If that is what you think, Onee-sama. But please let me know if anything else happens."

"Of course, Touko." Yumi promised. She could feel the woman's smile, even through her phone. It made her heart feel lighter than it had felt for a while. "I think that's about it, then. Same time tomorrow?"

"If you like, Onee-sama." Touko said lightly. Yumi laughed and shook her head. 'If you like' was actually a private joke between the two women. First started during Yumi's time in university, 'If you like' really meant 'every day, forever'. Being Touko's idea, it had often surprised Yumi how much of a romantic the girl was.

"You know, Touko…" Yumi said. "You are twenty-six years old. We graduated Lillian years ago. You don't have to call me 'Onee-sama' anymore." She knew she was preaching to the choir, but again, Yumi knew what the reply would be.

"Of course I know that, Onee-sama. You tell me often." From the tone of her voice, Yumi could tell that Touko was sporting her trademark smirk. "Have a lovely night."

"Good night, Touko." Yumi said and, with a sigh, keyed off her phone and tossed it on her bed. Taking another look at the clock, she noticed it had just passed nine o'clock. Allowing herself a small smile, Yumi traded her towel for a long t-shirt and panties and made her way to the living room, where her television awaited.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 3**

"Well, I must admit, I really like what I see, Fukuzawa-san." The man said, nodding appreciatively at the book of samples he just finished looking through. Pushing the book back to Yumi, he leaned back in his chair. "I can see why I was referred to you."

"Thank you very much, Onoga-san." Yuuki lowered his head in a bow beside Yumi, who mirrored her brother's action. "We are extremely pleased that you like our work."

_Our work?_

Yumi felt her eyebrow twitch. Yuuki hadn't picked up a drafting pencil since he graduated. But the client didn't really need to know that. Their father still did a lot, but he was slowly pushing more of the work onto his children in order to prepare for them taking over the Fukuzawa family business. Yuuki mainly concentrated on management and interacting with the clients, whereas Yumi did most of the designing herself. It was fine with her; she and Yuuki were sticking to their strengths. She wasn't really good with people the way Yuuki was.

She liked the isolation of the drafting table. Less time for acting and more time for thinking.

"Can we expect to be working with you, in that case?" Yuuki pressed Onoga politely. The older man scratched his stubble in a contemplative fashion for a few moments, casting his eyes between the two siblings. He 'hummed' to himself while he looked over Yuuki's features, and Yumi had to work to keep her business visage up when the man looked over her own face. After making up his mind, he nodded.

"I think we can expect great things." He said with a wide smile. "I would love my summer home to be designed by the Fukuzawas." With that, everyone stood up and exchanged handshakes.

"Thank you very much, Onoga-san." Yumi and Yuuki said together, causing the man to guffaw heartily.

"Gaha! You two certainly are twins! How excellent!"

After exchanging a few more crucial bits of information and deciding on their next meeting, Onoga bid the Fukuzawa siblings a goodbye and left the restaurant, leaving the pair to finish at their leisure. After a few seconds, Yuuki stretched his arms with a loud sigh.

"That went well! Awesome!" He said, grinning widely. He leaned over and ribbed Yumi, causing her to recoil back on her side of the booth. "Come on! Smile! We got the deal!"

Yumi stuffed her book of samples into her briefcase and took a sip from her glass of iced tea, her face stiff. "I know. I am happy, Yuuki." Even to her own ears, she didn't sound happy. Yuuki raised an eyebrow and frowned back as Yumi.

"Oh, yea. You sound ecstatic." He said sardonically, his smile sliding off his face. "Just wanna go out and jump for joy. Go and shout your joy to the world, right? Happy happy." He picked at his rice with a fork, a suddenly uncomfortable look creeping into his features. After a long moment, he sighed and put down his fork. "Alright, Yumi, I'm sorry I didn't tell you. Really. I am. But Onoga-san is a really important client. We can't just turn him down because of…" He trailed off, waving his hand as if to emphasis his point. What point that was, Yumi could guess.

"You should have given me some kind of warning." She said softly, taking another moment to sip another half-mouthful of tea. "I wasn't really ready for that."

"I know. I'm sorry. I thought… well, I thought if I told you, you would have said no to the deal."

"It would have crossed my mind. But I am not a child, Yuuki. I would not have turned down a client simply because of a silly reason like that." Yumi willed her voice to keep as steady as she could, but it was a near thing.

"I understand. I just thought that because Onoga-san does business with the Ogasawaras, you-" The sound of Yumi slamming her glass on the table stopped Yuuki from finishing his sentence. Instead, he shook his head and sighed. "Shit. I'm sorry. I'll shut up now."

Yumi set her eyes on her brother's, a withering glare straining the muscles in her face. For a long moment, she kept her glare on her brother. But, because she didn't exercise her angry muscles very often, and due to the pitiful face of fake shame her brother was making to make her feel better, she relaxed with a tired smile.

"God, you look so damn pathetic when you're sorry." She said with a snort. She picked up a napkin and slowly dabbled at her hand, now a bit wet from spilt tea. Yuuki seemed to relax his shoulders and grinned back at Yumi.

"You know I look cute, though, right?"

"Just as cute as me, baaaaaaka. We're twins."

"Yea, but I'm the cuter one."

"Whatever." Yumi said, standing up with her bag. "I'm off. Call me later, alright?"

"No problem. I'll call you after I work out the details about the new deal." Yuuki snapped his fingers, suddenly remembering something. "Oh yea. Mom and Dad wanted to have dinner with us this weekend. Touko-san's invited, too. I'll pick you up?"

"Nah. Touko can drive me. See you then." Yumi waved to her brother and exited the restaurant in a brisk walk.

As she left the building and walked out into the cold, mid-January air, Yumi cupped her hands to her face and exhaled a breath of warm air into them. She watched the fog from her breath seep through her fingers and distantly thought if choosing to buy her first home had been a better choice than a car, as her brother opted for. At times like this, when Yumi had to rely on public transportation or her friends and family to transport her in the cold snowy air, she envied those who drove. But, when she got home that evening and could relax in her own home, watching her own television in her underwear, it made it all worth it.

Screw having a car. Her house was so much better.

Watching her bus approach up the road, Yumi fingered her phone in her coat pocket. She had a few good hours of free time, and considered calling someone to fill the gap. As the bus groaned and stopped in front of her, Yumi stepped up into the heated vehicle with thoughts of her friends floating through her mind.

First on her mental list was Yoshino Shimazu. Her best friend would be a perfect companion, even over the phone, to pass the time. That is… if she wasn't working at that particular moment. After graduating Lillian University, the vibrant girl had gone back to their old high school as a new teacher. Quite young to be an instructor of high school students, but her record at school as well as university allowed for some leeway. She spent her days teaching literature, both modern and (what she preferred to go into detail about) classic literature. She loved going on and on about old samurai epics and detective stories with her students, even if those pieces weren't part of the curriculum. She still had plenty of time on the weekends, luckily. She and Yumi often went out to various places during those times.

Next was Shimako Toudou. While not as close to Yumi as Yoshino was, Shimako was still a very good friend to her. Completely surprising everyone, when the girl graduated University she joined a famous law firm. No one ever noticed that the quiet, beautiful, and temple-raised Rosa Gigantea has an interest in law. But, even so, Shimako excelled brilliantly as a lawyer. One of the few that Yumi actually liked, humorously (or not so humorously) enough. This caused the girl's working hours to be somewhat sporadic, which often gave her and Yumi time to catch up during lunch.

Rei Hasekura was also definitely towards the top of the list. Or would be… if she, like her cousin, weren't teaching. Now a physical education teacher for a few different schools, the older girl had even less free time than Yoshino. But, even with how busy she usually was, Rei never failed in responding whenever Yumi wanted to talk or send an email.

Touko, of course, was out of the question. The younger woman was busy enough as it was, what with classes during the day and working at her grandfather's hospital in her spare time. Additionally, from what Touko said, the busy girl also made time to get together with her own petite soeur from Lillian from time to time. Yumi had no idea how the girl even managed it all. If it were Yumi, she would have cracked long ago.

 _Hell_ , thought Yumi as she watched the passing street signs and intersections through the foggy windows of the bus,  _I did crack… and I didn't even have the pressure that Touko has._  Then again… that had been for completely different reasons.

Suddenly, with her thoughts threatening to turn depressing again, Yumi decided that she needed a coffee... and maybe some cake. And a cookie or two. And it just so happened the bus was currently stopping at the right place to get it.

As the bus coasted to a stop, Yumi stepped up to the opening door and hopped of the bus, careful to keep her footing on the sidewalk. The snow was well-cared for on the walkways, but it paid to tread lightly. Yumi watched her bus disappear down the road for a few moments, and then looked around to gain her bearings. After finding the right direction to take, she set off.

It didn't take long, maybe a few minutes of walking, to finally find her favorite café. As she got closer, she could see the pleasantly decorated outside of the building. The owner still hadn't taken down the Christmas decorations (a "huge hassle", the older woman reasoned), and the strings of differently colored lights beckoned to passersby to come and partake of whatever it was that happened to be brewing at any particular moment.

As she approached the front door, Yumi set her taste buds into 'coffee mode' and pulled the door open.

"Ah!"

"Uwah!"

The first thing Yumi saw was a mass of dark hair fill her vision. She then felt a light impact on her body and at once, the world seemed to spin upside down. Somewhere in the back of her mind, as she felt her back hit the ground, Yumi had the distinct feeling of déjà vu.

For a few short moments, the world was a dizzy kaleidoscope of light and dark. Yumi blinked a few times, and silently thanked herself that her glasses were in her purse. As her vision focused and her vertigo abated, she became aware that a heavy weight was on her body, pushing on both her stomach and her breast.

"Oh my! Are you alright?" She heard a voice call out. Again, the feeling of déjà vu continued.

"Wa…?" She felt her own voice croak, suddenly aware that the dark thing in her eyes was a mass of hair. "Who?" Then, the pressure lifted off of her chest, and she could breathe again.

"I'm sorry! I crushed you. Are you alright?"

As the pressure lifted from her body, so did the mess of hair. Suddenly able to see and move, Yumi pushed herself up on her elbows and looked up-

To see a face Yumi hadn't seen in years.

"O-Onee-sama?!" Yumi sputtered reflexively.

After speaking, Yumi's breath caught in her throat and her entire body seemed to freeze. Her coat and trousers were warm for winter weather, but it still felt as though she had jumped chest-first into a powdery snow bank naked.

Even as Yumi's mind numbly tried to reason that the girl couldn't possibly be who she thought it was, her eyes couldn't match it. Sharp, regal-looking and beautiful face. Long, dark hair spilling down her back and falling down beside her face. Piercing, dark blue eyes. There was little mistake. It looked exactly like her.

It was just impossible.

"Are you alright?"

The voice sent a prickly sensation through Yumi's ears and into her brain. It was the same exact voice as she remembered. She, more that anyone, would know this voice; this calm, controlled, and lovely voice.

Yumi stared, her eyes wide, at the women kneeling a couple feet away from her. Even after nine whole years of not seeing her in person, Yumi could still distinctively recognize her. Even after nine long years, she still had the same long, black hair. She still had dark, piercing blue eyes. Her face, though more mature-looking, was still the same beautiful face she had grown to love in high school. Her voice was still the same cool, calm and collected voice she heard every time she shut out the noises of the world.

She was exactly as she remembered.

It was Sachiko Ogasawara.

Yumi's Onee-sama.

The girl who left Yumi alone in the world.

0 - 0 - 0

_End of Chapter 1_

 


	2. Chapter 2

**The Princess and the Sparrow**

_Chapter 2_

**_Previously on the Princess and the Sparrow..._ **

_Yumi stared, her eyes wide, at the women kneeling a couple feet away from her. Even after nine whole years of not seeing her in person, Yumi could still distinctively recognize her. Even after nine long years, she still had the same long, black hair. She still had dark, piercing blue eyes. Her face, though more mature-looking, was still the same beautiful face she had grown to love in high school. Her voice was still the same cool, calm and collected voice she heard every time she shut out the noises of the world._

_She was exactly as she remembered._

_It was Sachiko Ogasawara._

_Yumi's Onee-sama._

_The girl who left Yumi alone in the world._

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 1**

There Yumi sat, a textbook example of shock and befuddlement. She stared unblinkingly at the woman in front of her, trying to make head or tails from her current situation. Before Yumi could shake herself out of her daze, the woman shook her head and her eyes flew down to Yumi's front.

"Oh, my! Your coat…" Yumi followed her eyes down to her front and saw a dark stain on her beige winter coat. "I spilled my drink on you! Oh no…" She leaned forward and produced a napkin from somewhere Yumi couldn't see, trying to pat down the area. Even as the woman tried, it was clear the mark wouldn't come out with just a napkin. After realizing it was futile, she clicked her tongue and got to her feet. "I'm so sorry, Miss! I swear if it stains I will pay for it! Let's go inside…" She held her hand out for Yumi to take.

Yumi stared at the woman's outstretched hand for a long time. Her perfectly manicured nails with just a hint of polish (light rose if Yumi's eyes weren't mistaken), long thin fingers, a slender hand; all leading up to her arm and body, which was wrapped in an attractive black snow jacket. Her head, perfectly placed atop her neck, faced her intently, a serious expression in her eyes. Her piercing, familiar eyes.

_Wait… Miss?_  Yumi felt her voice cut into her mind, sending her thoughts into a deeper confusion.  _Did she call me Miss?_

Suddenly very aware that the cold ground was getting her trousers and elbows damp, she held her arm out and clasped the woman's hand. With a light grunt, the woman pulled Yumi to her feet.

"There we go." She said, her nervous smile marring her features only just noticeably. "Now, let's go inside. We'll take care of that coat." She stepped back and opened the door, stepping to the side to allow Yumi plenty of room to enter. After a moment of dazed confusion, Yumi numbly walked over the threshold. As she entered, she heard the familiar bells chime as the door shut. Yumi stood, looking around dumbly, and an arm linked with hers, pulling her gently towards a booth along the wall. She was placed directly beside a four person booth, one with seats on each side, and the woman's all-too-familiar face appeared in front of her again. "Please, take off the coat and have a seat. I'll get that stain out."

Yumi felt her mouth move, but couldn't quite form any words. As confused and uncomfortable as she was, she wasn't sure she would be able to get any words out even if she tried. Instead, she gave a small nod and slipped her coat off her shoulders, handing it to the dark-haired woman. She smiled and gestured to the seat.

"Please sit down. Would you like anything? It'll be my treat... as an initial apology." She added, almost as an afterthought. Again, Yumi moved her mouth, but no sounds came out. After a moment, the other seemed to understand. "Would… you like me to choose something?" Yumi nodded again, and the woman immediately set off towards the counter with Yumi's coat in hand.

Yumi stared after her, her muddled mind desperately trying to make sense out of what was happening. Here she was... eight whole years of not seeing or even speaking to the woman, and she suddenly runs into her (quite literally!) in a cafe! In Japan, of all places!

What was she even doing in Japan?

The last thing Yumi heard from Touko was that  _she_  was still in the United Kingdom, running the European branch of the Ogasawara Group out of... what city was it? London? York? Wales? Some city Yumi hadn't bothered to remember. Sure, that was a whole year ago... but surely if  _she_  were to have come back, Touko would have told Yumi... right?  _Somebody_  would have! Even the woman's cousin, Kashiwagi! Sure, Yumi and he hadn't been on the best of terms the past couple years; but he owed her  _at least_  that much.

Yumi shook her head in an attempt to bring her focus back on the present. She narrowed her eyes towards the familiar-looking woman, who was in conversation with one of the baristas. She was gesturing to Yumi's coat in her hands, and the barista handed her a bottle. It was, Yumi assumed, filled with some sort of cleaning agent. The dark-haired woman smiled and bowed her head to the girl, and walked back towards the booth with both the coat and the bottle in hand.

"They had some bleach for colors and..." She leaned over, picking up her bag she had set on the floor. "I have a few other surprises that work well with stains." She finished with a very familiar smile. Setting Yumi's coat on the table, she sat herself down and started flattening out the clothing. Yumi watched the woman look over the wet patch of her coat silently, not quite sure how she should be taking this whole thing.

Almost dwarfed by the pounding of her heart in her ears, Yumi barely heard herself rattle off question after silent question.

Was she not going to say anything? Was she going to ignore her? Ignore what happened? Was she going to just fix her coat and leave? Just like last time? Where did she even learn to treat a stain? What the  _hell_  was going on?

"Oh, this should come out easily; the fabric is stain-resistant. That is indeed lucky." She sighed happily and unscrewed the bottle of bleach, careful to tuck her dark bangs behind her ears before doing so. With a quick movement, the poured some onto a cotton ball (which she produced from her bag) and started dabbing away at Yumi's coat.

"Where did you learn to treat stains?" Yumi found herself whisper, her quiet voice noticeably shaky. She thought her voice had been too quiet to hear, but the other had definitely picked up on it. Her ears had always been good, after all.

"Hmm?" The other looked up and tilted her head slightly to the side. A somewhat… odd gesture, considering the person making it. "Well, I deal with stains often, actually. Not  _coffee_  stains... but lots of different kinds." She reached into her bag and withdrew a small bottle. With a light tap, she poured a small amount of the clear liquid on Yumi's coat.

"What's that?" Yumi asked, not really caring what the woman was doing to her coat. She could always buy a new one. The coat didn't matter to her in the slightest. She was just talking to keep the pounding in her ears and chest from getting any worse.

"This?" The dark-haired woman asked, holding up the small bottle. "It's just something I buy from a supplier that works wonders on just about anything that stains. Like I said, I deal with that often."

"Why?"

"I paint."

That certainly was not an answer Yumi expected. Out of all the things she knew the Ogasawara princess to do, painting was not often one of them. She  _could_ … and when she did you could put any of her creations up in a museum… but it wasn't anything she had spent a lot of time pursuing. Apparently, she had changed a lot in eight years.

Yumi's surprise must have been obvious, because the other cast her dark eyes up at Yumi and smiled softly. "Surprised? It's written all over your face. " Her head tilted to the side again. "In fact, has anyone ever told you that you have quite an expressive face?"

Yumi opened and closed her mouth for a few moments, a flustered blush creeping up her neck to her ears. Of course she knew about that! Everyone did! She didn't have to go ahead and say that like it was her first time ever finding out.

Settling on expressing annoyance, Yumi crossed her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes in a glare. "Of course I know that, Onee-sama. That hasn't changed at all."

There is was. She said it. It was out. As she said those words her stomach somersaulted painfully, giving her the impression that if she moved even an inch, she would soon lose her lunch.

A pity. It had been so good, too.

At once, the woman's smile faltered and her eyes widened in surprise. Her hands stopped working on Yumi's coat. She closed her mouth and the skin around her eyes loosened as she looked back at Yumi. There was no fear, anger, shame, or happiness in her face; just confusion and surprise.

After a few long moments of silence, she spoke.

"O...Onee-sama? What do you mean?"

Yumi felt a muscle in her cheek twitch, her nausea still forcing her to remain as still as possible. "Don't be coy, Onee-sama." She said sharply. In an attempt to keep her voice from shaking, she let anger take the place of fear. "I may still be Yumi, but that doesn't mean I am still stupid or gullible."

Now it was the other's turn to open and close her mouth wordlessly. Seemingly at a loss for a reply, she just returned Yumi's cold glare with confusion. Her silence just prompted Yumi to continue, her anger growing with every passing moment.

"What, nothing to say now? Is the incredible Sachiko Ogasawara out of retorts?" Yumi hissed, keeping her voice as low as she could. Her voice came out as a strained whisper, but it still sounded to Yumi's ears angrier than she had sounded in years. "What the  _hell_  are you doing here? Go back to England! It's where you want to be, right?"

The woman recoiled slightly at Yumi's tone. She returned Yumi's glare with a slightly hurt look of her own, and Yumi couldn't help the feeling of regret that came up at the sudden moisture in the corner of the other's eyes.

"I..." She said after taking a slow breath.

"Sagara-san! Your order!" The barista she talked to earlier called out, placing two cups and a plate on the counter.

Yumi blinked, shooting a look of shock to the younger girl, and back to the other. Then back to the girl behind the counter. Surely she heard wrong. Sagara? Sachiko Sagara? Not Ogasawara? What was going on?

"Excuse me." The dark-haired woman said softly, standing up. Not looking at Yumi, she walked directly over to the counter and picked up the cups. Yumi stared after her, the feeling of shock pushing its way back to the forefront of her mind, well toppling over the anger that was quickly dying away.

Sagara? Who? What?

Yumi barely noticed when the other woman placed a cup of a dark, steaming liquid in front of her, and again when a plate weighed down with a rather large slice of red velvet cake appeared next. What she did notice, however, was that an ID card was placed on the table beside the cake.

"I think... you may have me mistaken for someone else..." The woman across from her said softly. Yumi stared at the table, not daring to look up. The feeling of shame now began to manifest in her cheeks and ears. She couldn't have been mistaken. There was no way she could have been wrong. She knew her. She knew her better than anyone else in the world. There was no way…

Slowly, she leaned forward to look at the card, and felt her stomach churn painfully again as the information made its way to her consciousness.

Maya Sagara. Age twenty-eight. Born in Kyoto. Japanese citizen. Address…

Maya Sagara.

Not Sachiko Ogasawara.

Not Sachiko. Not Sachiko. Not her Onee-sama. Not her. Not her. Not her. Not her. NOT HER!

"On-" Yumi exhaled sharply, suddenly feeling very ill. The churning in her stomach became a sickening heat that spread to her shoulders and neck, and her mouth lost all of its moisture. "Be right back!" Was all she could manage before shooting up out of her seat and running to the restroom.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 2**

Yumi couldn't hold back the relieved sigh that escaped her lips as she splashed a generous amount of water on her pink-tinged face. She stared back at the young woman in the mirror for a few moments, all the while her chocolate-brown eyes stared back at her sadly. Over the years, Yumi had gotten used to vomiting. Whether it was due to anxiety, medication she had been prescribed, or even a few times of being over-liberal with certain types of alcohol, it had happened quite a few times. Obviously, with how often it had happened, and for whatever reason why it happened, it was not something she was overly fond of.

"Bye bye lunch…" Yumi sighed and rinsed her hands under the tap once more. As she reached for her pocket to retrieve a tissue, she grimaced with the realization that her coat was still out in the main room of the café with _her_ -

No. Not  _her_. Not Sachiko. Maya.

Maya Sagara.

How could she have been so stupid? How could have made such a childish mistake? She was supposed to be past all this, wasn't she? She was supposed to be  _an adult_. She was supposed to-

"God… Damn it…" Yumi said, balling her hands into tight fists on the bathroom counter. She knew she had to go back out there. She had to go and apologize, at the very least. It was what an adult would do. She owed this woman- this stranger- at least that much.

Giving one last look in the mirror, Yumi ignored the look of pity that came from those brown eyes and walked out of the bathroom. As she entered the main dining area, Yumi's gaze fell on Maya, who was dutifully working away at Yumi's coat. Even though she now knew that this woman was not  _her_ … Yumi still couldn't help the feeling of anxiety that sprung up as she saw her.

The two women looked almost exactlyalike.

Same hair.

Same eyes.

Same face.

Same mouth…

Surely it couldn't be a coincidence… could it?

Sighing to herself, Yumi pressed her lips together and walked back to the table. When she got there, she stopped in front of Maya's seat and bowed at the waist.

"Sagara-san, I apologize." She said, her eyes glued to the floor. "I mistook you for someone else, and I said some really cruel things. You didn't deserve that, and I am truly sorry for my behavior." Yumi stood there for a few moments, feeling embarrassment creep up her neck as she bowed to the slightly older woman.

"It's alright. I understand." Came the calm response. "Don't worry about it, really."

Yumi straightened herself and sighed in relief at the smile on Sachiko… no- on Maya's face. "I'm really sorry." She said again, putting at much sincerity into her voice as she could manage. Maya shook her head and gestured to Yumi's side of the booth.

"Really, it's fine. Please sit down. I'm just about finished here." She said, her collected face a perfect resemblance to one Yumi had known and loved for so long.

Holding back the uncomfortable thought that just sprang into her head, Yumi re-seated herself and took a steadying breath. That was entirely too close. If it were indeed  _her_ … then Yumi had no idea how it would have turned out. If she had been prepared for it, then perhaps Yumi could handle herself. But, as it were… she was lucky. Lucky it was not Sachiko Ogasawara.

Safe with the knowledge that it was not her old Onee-sama sitting in front of Yumi, and instead it was just someone who looked just like her, Yumi was beginning to feel the aftereffects of her anger release itself from her body.

"So, may I know your name?" Maya asked lightly, her dark eyes flicking up from the coat to Yumi's face. "You know my name, after all."

Yumi gave a weak smile as she straightened herself. "I'm Yumi. Yumi Fukuzawa." Out of habit, she leaned forward and reached into her coat's breast-pocket. After slipping her fingers in the flap, she withdrew a small silver case. At Maya's raised eyebrow, Yumi pulled out a business card, and handed it to Maya using both her hands. She hadn't meant to be so formal, but the habit was a hard one to break. Still, she had to fight the small feeling of embarrassment that sprang up when Maya dropped her cotton ball to retrieve Yumi's business card with both hands.

"It's Fukuzawa from Fukuzawa Yukichi. You add 'right' to a shimesu-hen for Yu, and Mi for the year of the snake." Yumi explained as Maya looked over the card. Only after closing her mouth did Yumi realize that, not only was the explanation unneeded as Maya had her name written right in front of her, but the woman hadn't even asked. Out of the depths of Yumi's memories, she recalled her first time ever being introduced to the Rose family from her days at Lillian. The previous Rosa Gigantea, Rosa Chinensis and Rosa Foetida asking her for the Kanji spelling of her name, and Yumi's practiced response.

For a fleeting moment, Yumi wondered if the reason why she explained her name was because Maya's looks and voice reminded her of that day.

"I see…" Maya said, nodding. She then looked up and colored slightly; something Yumi was not all that used to seeing on that face. "You… want to know how to spell my name in Kanji, as well?"

"Oh, no, no." Yumi said, declining off the offer with a nervous wave of her hand. "I saw your name written on your ID. I'm not sure why I told you when you saw my name written down. It just slipped out. Habit, I guess."

Maya gave a soft laugh; a sound that Yumi found all-too-familiar, despite not hearing it for years _._  She was surprisingly glad to hear the sound again, and she felt her shoulders relax in response. "I see. You are an architect?" Maya asked, flicking Yumi's business card around to see the back.

"Yes. Well, more of an architectural designer. I work with my brother and my father. We have a family architectural business."

"Wow. That sounds wonderful." Maya said with a smile. She carefully slipped Yumi's business card into the purse at her side. After re-closing the purse, squared her shoulders and sat up a little straighter. "You know, I looked a little into architectural drafting when I was in art school. But it was far too difficult for me, I'm afraid."

"Oh yea? You said you are a painter?" Yumi asked, interested in what the woman did.

Maya shook her head. "No. Well, I  _do_ paint, but not primarily."

"A hobby?"

Another shake of the head. "No. Well…" She pursed her lips in thought. "I guess I am a writer. I write children's books and illustrate them myself."

"Hmm…" Yumi made a noise that was that of genuine interest and put her chin on her hands. She was still feeling the aftereffects of her anger and nervousness, and it was all she could do to keep from fidgeting around. "Are you published?"

Maya blinked and slowly smiled. "Yes. I have been published for a couple years now." She then looked back down at Yumi's coat and, after giving it a quick final examination, slid it over the table towards its owner. "There we go- good as new, Fukuzawa-san. Lucky thing, too; it looks expensive." She giggled softly, holding her hand to her mouth.

Yumi took her coat and lowered her head in a short bow. "Thank you very much. You didn't have to go through the trouble, Sagara-san. It isn't really all that important, this coat."

"Nonsense. A woman's clothing is just as important to her as her personal features." The other said, holding up her finger as if giving a lecture. She then laughed and gave Yumi a wink. "Or so my mother always says."

Yumi had to keep her surprise from leaking out on her face to that declaration. Considering how similar Maya looked to Sachiko Ogasawara, it was indeed unsettling to see the woman laugh and wink… like a young woman (or even a teenager!). It was almost like a playful gesture, one two close friends would use with one another. Not that Yumi minded, really. In fact, it made her respond in kind.

"My mother says the same thing!" She said, joining the older woman in her laughter. "In fact, many of my friends also say that… I may be the only one who doesn't really care about what she wears…" She tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Maybe I need to look into that a little more?"

Maya gave a shrug and, looking at her watch, hissed softly between her teeth. "Oh, my… I am afraid I have to go. I have a business meeting to attend." She began to gather her things and put them in her bag. Yumi blinked and sat up straighter, suddenly very self-conscious.

"Oh! I'm sorry… I must have made you late. What with my coat and-"

"Don't worry, Fukuzawa-san, I won't be late. And even if I were to be late," She smiled, picking up her bag and her cup of coffee. "It was worth it. It was lovely meeting you." After standing, she bowed to Yumi. Scrambling to get up, Yumi returned the woman's bow and felt a bright blush warm her cheeks.

"I-it was nice meeting you too, Sagara-san!" She stammered nervously. "G-gokigenyou!" Only after saying the phrase did Yumi blink in shock. Just where had  _that_  come from? She hadn't said  _that_  phrase in years! Not since her time in Lillian Academy. She slowly looked up at Maya and was relieved to see the woman's familiar smile.

"Gokigenyou, Fukuzawa-san." She said and, with a small wave, she walked towards the entrance. Yumi watched as she opened the wooden door and closed it behind her, its bells jingling just under the brass-coated doorknob.

Exhaling heavily, Yumi's body crumpled back down on the seat and she stared for a long time at the untouched drink and cake in front of her. Today had felt so long and so very busy, and it was barely past two in the afternoon. Her mind felt numb and unfamiliar. Her body felt stretched and tingly. Her stomach still churned uncomfortably.

She had woken up this morning expecting a normal Friday. And it had been anything but that. Not only had she been pushed into a meeting with someone who worked with the Ogasawaras… but she also met someone who could be a doppelgänger for the one-and-only (at least… presumably) Sachiko Ogasawara.

Yumi eyed the slice of red velvet cake, not entirely sure her still-tender stomach could manage it. The drink she could probably force down. In fact, it would actually get rid of the acidic taste of vomit that she finally noticed lingering in her mouth. But the cake… the cake she would have to take home. Maybe Touko would like it. She was possibly going to come over that evening anyway.

Yumi reached out and picked up the lukewarm cup. She gave one last look to the door. After a long moment she swiveled her eyes towards the frosted window and took a slow, quiet sip of macchiato.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 3**

Later that evening, Yumi found herself in her kitchen, dividing her attention between a marinating evenly-sliced beef brisket, russet potatoes boiling in a pot on her stove range, and an assortment of vegetables soaking beside the sink. After taking a solid twenty minutes of looking through her cupboards and refrigerator decided what to cook, she had finally decided on a western-influence meal.

During her time in university, Yumi decided (well, truth be told her friends decided, and Yumi had agreed by indifference) that she needed a new hobby to take her mind off of… certain things. After many failed attempts, cooking was finally settled upon and much to everyone's surprise, Yumi excelled marvelously at the skill.

At least one time a week, Yumi would get together with Yoshino and Rei at their home for dinner. Rei, being an extremely gifted cook, was the primary teacher for Yumi's new hobby. Yoshino, being an extremely gifted eater, was the perfect judge of her efforts. In the years since then, Yumi had continued to improve by cooking anything and everything she saw. On television, on the internet, even from word of mouth; Yumi would try it all. Sometimes she would succeed, sometimes she would fail. It didn't matter to her. What mattered was that in the process of cooking, she could relax. Relax, reflect, and try to better herself in the process.

It was Yumi's favorite and most useful attribute now that she lived on her own.

As she watched the water surrounding the potatoes boil, Yumi thought about the events of the day that led up to the evening. First, her business lunch with Yuuki and their client, Onoga. Yumi had pushed that to the back of her mind with what happened after, but now that she had the time to reflect on it, the realization of her new project hit her full on. A summer house wasn't that big of a deal. Yumi hadn't designed anything bigger than a two-story home as of yet, but it wouldn't be too much of a stretch for her. Actually working with the client would be the difficult part. Truthfully, however, the fact that Onoga did business with the Ogasawaras wasn't really what bothered Yumi. What bothered her was the fact that her brother hadn't given her any warning whatsoever. She had been expecting a regular client, not someone with ties to her old grande soeur's family.

What was Yuuki playing at, not cluing her in about that? Was he trying to annoy Yumi? Trying to embarrass her? Trying to force some sort of relapse?

Yumi shook her head and, using a large wooden spoon, gave the potatoes a few pushes in the boiling water. Whatever the reason her brother had for not telling her anything, the fact remained that Yumi was not a child anymore. Business was business, and she had to treat this client as important as any other. No matter whom he had relationships with.

But that still did not get Yuuki off the hook. Yumi would have to find a way to get back at her  _younger_  brother later. Maybe Yoshino could help come up with something? Her best friend usually had good ideas to annoy people... in a good-natured way, of course.

Yumi smiled ruefully and brought the potatoes down to a simmer. They were about ready to mash, and being potatoes, they could wait until the meat was just about finished.

She walked around her kitchen island to the pan of brisket lying out on the counter. Quick as a flash, she poked the meat with her index finger and popped her finger into her mouth, tasting the meat's juice. Good, it was ready to cook. She could start it and then take a breather while it cooked.

Putting on a pair of thick, pink oven mitts, she picked up the pan of brisket and walked over to the oven. She stopped in front of the dual-level hinged doors and used her foot to open the lower of the two. Making sure to double-check if the oven was pre-heated to the right temperature, she slid the pan of meat into the oven and carefully shut it.

"Alright… about forty-five minutes to cook in the oven… another five-to-ten to cook outside of the oven… fifty-five minutes." She said out loud, memorizing the instructions. She had a kitchen egg-timer, but it also helped her to say these types of things out loud. Yumi found it helpful, at least.

She slipped off the oven mitts and leaned against the edge of the countertop. Casting her eyes around the room, Yumi's attention fell on her phone laying on the other side of the island. After a moment, she walked over and picked it up, keying the bright screen to life. There weren't any messages or anything, she knew, but that still didn't stop her from hoping.

Stifling the sigh that threatened to escape her lips, Yumi turned her thoughts to the second, and by far the more interesting, development of the day.

Maya Sagara.

The woman who Yumi took at first to be none other than Sachiko Ogasawara.

That had certainly been a bigger surprise than the meeting with Onoga. Whereas she would have handled (professionally) a meeting with someone like Onoga, a meeting with Sachiko would have not been so easy for Yumi. Luckily, though, it had turned out not to be the Ogasawara heiress (currently still in England), and instead someone completely new.

New and more than a little intriguing.

Yumi's phone dimmed down to a black, inactive screen, and she tapped it again habitually.

Maya certainly had  _looked_  like Sachiko… but from what Yumi could tell from the older woman's mannerisms, she was pretty different personality-wise. She had acted... well...  _younger_  than she was. Almost playful, but still with that regal calmness that Sachiko absolutely radiated. It had been an interesting mix; one that Yumi was surprised to notice.

It was just too bad that she never got Maya's contact information.

Suddenly, blinking to herself, Yumi replayed the thought she just had through the analytical part of her mind. Maya's contact information? Why would she want that? Why would she  _need_  it? It wasn't as though she needed to get to get to know the woman. She was a perfect stranger. One who just  _happened_  to look like someone Yumi-

...

Yumi shook her head, attempting to clear it from unneeded thoughts. No, she didn't need to think like that. Sachiko was long gone. Thinking about things like this would only cause Yumi to get depressed again. If Yumi were sure of anything, it was that she didn't need that kind of thinking in her life anymore.

Still, though, it seemed to Yumi a shame that the meeting had been a one-time thing.

Suddenly, her phone buzzed in her hand.

"Gah!" Yumi cried out reflexively, holding her hand out at arm's length. It buzzed again, and this time Yumi let out a breath of relief. It was just a phone call… nothing to be concerned about. However, as she peered at the blinking display, her brow furrowed in confusion.

'Unknown caller' was what appeared on the incoming call information.

"Huh?" Yumi voiced aloud slowly. An unknown caller? She had a privately listed phone number; one she only used for personal and business reasons. She rarely received calls from an unknown number. There was no one she knew that would normally call using an unknown number, even. "Who…?" She mumbled slowly.

Suddenly, in a flash of recollection, Yumi remembered that she had given her business card to Maya Sagara earlier that afternoon. Yumi hadn't gotten the woman's contact information, but she had gotten Yumi's! But, it couldn't be her calling, could it? For one, she had no real reason to call her. Not only that, they had only met (and briefly at that) that afternoon. Even if she had a reason… it seemed a bit… presumptuous to call someone that soon.

Didn't it?

Swallowing against a suddenly dry throat, she pressed the answer toggle and pressed the pone to her ear. "H-hello. This is Yumi Fukuzawa."

"Yumi-san! Helloooooooo!"

It took a few short moments for the excited voice on the other line to become recognizable to Yumi. At once, the knot in her stomach unwound and she let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. "Yoshino-san… it's you…"

"Of course it's me!" Yoshino said, her tone turning a little indignant. "Who else would it be?"

"Well, you are calling me on an unknown number. So I was confused."

"Ahh, I see. I see." Came the amused reply. "I'm using the house phone. My cell is Oh Oh Pee: Out Of Power! Soooo… yea. Hence, the landline."

"I understand." Yumi said, sighing heavily. Thank God… she really didn't need any more surprises today. "So, what's up?"

Yoshino's voice was muffled for a moment, and then came back clear in the phone. "Huh? Oh! Yea! Rei-chan and I wanted to see if you were free tomorrow."

Yumi smiled into the mouthpiece and shrugged, fully aware that the other could not see her gesture. "I guess I am. That is, if whatever you have planned is better than sitting around eating ice cream in my underwear. Can you top that?" She heard Yoshino hiss sharply, a quick exhale of breath between her teeth.

"Ssssahhh! Damn! That's a close one. We were thinking of going to have tea at a mahjong house, some lunch, and then go shopping. Say… around noonish?" Her tone rose at the end, a clear sign at temptation towards Yumi. Not that the woman needed to bother; Yumi actually thought the idea sounded rather appealing.

"That does sound like it could be fun." She said. "Touko is coming to stay the night in a bit, though. Should I invite her as well?"

"Hang on." Yoshino said. Her voice became muffled again. Assumedly, Yumi guessed, she was conferring with Rei. The two cousins lived next door to each other and were therefore, essentially, housemates. They usually made plans together and needed to often check with the other before changes could be made. After a moment, Yoshino came back. "Rei-chan said sure, bring her along. I'm not sure why you have to ask, though. She's one of us, girl. She's always welcome to whatever we do."

Yumi shrugged again. "I know, but you know me. I always ask."

"Right, right, right. So, tomorrow?"

"Yup. Just text the address to me and Touko will drive us there."

"Cool. See you!" Yumi heard a soft, distant "See you tomorrow, Yumi-chan!" on the other end. The second voice belonged to Rei, she knew.

"Alright, good night, you two."

Smiling to herself, Yumi ended the call and placed the phone back on the countertop. Shopping with the girls tomorrow  _did_ sound especially nice. It would be a day away from work and distractions, spent with her friends, just being  _girls_. With Yumi's oftentimes sporadic schedule, she usually didn't have enough time to be a girl _._  She was always just working, or with her brother, or drawing, or having quiet time at home alone. Having fun with friends was one of the things she missed most about her younger years in school and (when she had been emotionally stable enough) in university.

And if things went well, she might even find something cute to buy!

As the thought of buying something to wear occurred to her, Yumi heard a familiar voice in the back of her head, saying a somewhat unfamiliar phrase.

_"Nonsense. A woman's clothing is just as important to her as her personal features."_

Maya Sagara had said that earlier that day. If Sachiko Ogasawara had said it, Yumi would have been floored. But coming from someone else, who just happened to look and sound like the same woman... it seemed... different.

Suddenly, as if to stop Yumi from thinking too much more about that particular topic, her phone buzzed again. It buzzed twice, in quick succession. A message. "Yoshino sending me the address, huh? That was quick." Yumi said to herself and picked up her phone again. She pressed the toggle to expand the message and-

Immediately felt her stomach lurch as she read the words on the screen.

_Yumi Fukuzawa-san,_

_It was lovely meeting you today! You are an interesting person._

_I want to apologize again for spilling coffee on your coat. The stain should be gone, but if it is not let me know and I promise I will replace it for you._

_I wanted to ask if you frequented the cafe we met at often. Do you? If you do, maybe we will meet again._

_Have a lovely evening!_

_Maya_

Yumi read the message, and then re-read it more slowly. It was indeed a message from Maya. It wasn't very long, but it wasn't short enough to write off as something like a 'thank-you note'.  _Lovely meeting you_? _Interesting person_? What did she mean by adding those? Was she just being friendly, or was there another meaning in there?

And what about the last part? Maybe they will meet at the cafe again?

Yumi swallowed, gripping her phone tightly in her hand. It was at times like this she wished she knew more about working with people. Being a semi-hermit that only went to cafes alone and drew houses at home had its obvious disadvantages.

But one thing was certain about the message.

Maya thought Yumi was friendly enough to message her and likely wanted to meet again.

The question was... why?

A sharp ringing sound shook Yumi out of her stupor. "Uwah- Not again!" She cried out reflexively, clutching her phone to her breast. Only after a few moments of silence did she realize that she was still alone and then, feeling a little foolish, took a deep breath. "Just the front door." She told herself quietly. "Jeez, what am I, sixteen?" Laughing a little, she put her phone back on the counter and walked over to the over to check on the beef. Satisfied it was cooking properly, she nodded to herself and made her way out of the kitchen towards the front door.

"Just a second!" She called out towards the door. Walking over to her coat rack standing in the entryway, she picked out a light pink coat and slipped it on. Not bothering to zip up the coat, she stepped up to the door and opened it.

Touko Matsudaira stood on the other side of the doorway, her ever-present hair curls swaying gently in the evening winter breeze. Yumi smiled widely as she finished opening the door for the younger woman.

"Hi, Touko! I wasn't sure if you were going to be able to make it tonight." Yumi said as she stepped to the side, letting the other enter.

"At first, I wasn't sure I would be able to either, Onee-sama." Touko said, bowing slightly as she walked inside. "I managed to finish my lab work after lunch, but work at the hospital took all afternoon. It was all I could do to leave after everyone was taken care of."

"You really didn't have to go through so much trouble." Yumi said, shaking her head as Touko slipped of her ankle-length boots with one hand. Her other hand hefted her medium-sized overnight bag.

"Of course I did, Onee-sama." The younger woman returned tartly. "You are a troublesome Onee-sama. Therefore I must go through lots of trouble for you. Can I put this in your room?" Not allowing Yumi to come up with a retort for her vocal jab, she held up her bag with both hands.

Yumi kept her grin, but let her shoulders fall in defeat. The girl was quick, that much was certain. "Yea, go ahead. I'll be in the kitchen."

"I'll just be a moment."

With that, Touko marched off down the hall, but not before shrugging out of her burgundy winter coat and setting it on the coat rack as she passed. Yumi eyed the other's back for a moment, and then walked back down the hall to the kitchen. When she entered, she snatched up her phone and stuffed it into her trousers' pocket.

Better safe than sorry, after all. She knew Touko wouldn't go through her phone. But still...

After adjusting her somewhat loose-fitting jeans to accommodate for her phone, she opened the refrigerator and pulled out a pitcher filled with dark red juice. She then grabbed two glasses from the cupboard and poured enough of the juice to fill the glasses roughly halfway. When she was just putting the pitcher back into the refrigerator, Touko walked into the kitchen.

"So what are you attempting to make tonight, Onee-sama?" She asked, setting herself on one of the bar stools alongside the island in the middle of the kitchen.

"Beef brisket marinated in red wine, mashed potatoes and cherry tomato salad." Yumi said, eyeing Touko as she brought her a glass of the juice. The younger woman wore a grey and white striped turtleneck sweater, black knee-length skirt, and white winter leggings. Yumi also noticed the glint of silver earrings behind her hair curls. She didn't often wear earrings, and Yumi found herself wondering what occasion Touko was 'dolled up' for.

"Western Friday night, then? Thank you." Touko said as she accepted the glass of juice. She took a sip and eyed the drink appreciatively. "Pomegranate? What's the occasion?"

"No occasion. I just like it, you know that." Yumi said, laughing as she sat next to Touko. "I should ask the same to you. A skirt? Earrings? What, you going on a date after this or something?" She felt Touko stiffen beside her and she smiled into her glass. It was always fun seeing the woman's reactions to light prodding.

"I cannot look good for my Onee-sama?" She asked hotly, making an effort to turn away from Yumi. "I apologize! I didn't know I wasn't allowed to dress up for you. Next time, I shall make sure to put on a sack before I meet you." She turned her face back slightly towards Yumi, and took another drink from her glass. "This is good."

Yumi snorted a laugh a put her head on the counter (Thud!). "Oh my God, Touko!" She giggled into the granite counter-top. "You are just so cute!"

A grunt was her only reply.

"Alright, alright." Yumi cleared her throat. "How's this? I really appreciate that you go to school all day, work at the hospital all afternoon and evening, and then still have the time to dress up and come see me." Yumi reached out and pressed her hand to Touko's cheek. "Really. Thank you." The girl peered back at Yumi, her cheeks tinged a light pink as she considered the older woman's words. Then, after a few long moments, she nodded.

"Alright then." She said, apparently satisfied. "As long as you understand, Onee-sama." She then stood up and looked around the kitchen. "Now then, your  _cute_ and _overworked_ soeur would like to help you cook. What shall I do?"

Yumi smiled and stood up. "The meat is already in the oven so it'll be finished soon. I bought it pre-cooked and marinated it before popping it in the oven. It should still turn out alright, though. You can help prepare the tomato salad while I mash the potatoes. The makings are next to the sink and in the fridge. Cherry tomatoes, a cup of olives, some onion and pine nuts… the recipe is over there on the counter. You got to brown the pine nuts a bit, too." She gestured to a skillet already set out in the stove range beside the simmering pot of potatoes.

"And the salad dressing?" Touko asked, walking over to the sink to wash her hands.

"I already made the vinaigrette; olive oil, red wine vinegar, sugar and oregano. With just a bit of salt and pepper for seasoning. It's in a plastic container in the fridge."

The younger girl raised an eyebrow at Yumi after glancing over the recipe. "It seems to me that you don't even need my help, Onee-sama. You seem fairly on top of things."

Yumi laughed and placed a hand on Touko's shoulder in a consoling manner. "Now, now, Touko. As long as there is mixing and grunt work to do… you will always have a place in my kitchen."

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 4**

If Yumi had learned anything from taking Touko on as a petite soeur in high school, it was that the girl had many talents and strengths. Not once, in the ten years Yumi knew her, had Touko encountered difficulty doing anything (aside from a few instances, of course). The point is that Touko was a very self-assured woman. Definitely one of the strongest women Yumi knew, and when Touko said something, she was sure of it. She had rarely ever been wrong.

That was why when Touko put down her fork and looked at Yumi, her customary smirk gracing her face, and said "So, when will you tell me who it was you met?", all Yumi could do was groan in defeat, and slam her head down on her hardwood dinner table.

She could never hide anything from the younger girl. Intuition like a psychic. That had to be it. Yumi could testify in court if Touko were ever called on it.

Yumi peered up at Touko from the tabletop, and groaned a second time at the satisfied face the girl made as she picked up her fork. Humming an indistinct song to herself, she skewered a piece of brisket and popped it into her mouth. "This is fantastic. My compliments to the chef." She said after she chewed and swallowed.

"Oh shut up, smart-ass."

Another shrug, followed by another piece of meat. "In all seriousness though, Onee-sama: you are too easy to read."

"I know..." Yumi sighed and sat up. She gathered some mashed potato onto her fork and took a half-bite. She felt her lips turn into a small smile as she tasted the rewards of adding cheese to the potatoes after she mashed them. "That'll totally get me into trouble someday."

"I'm sure it already has." The younger girl said. She took a moment to dig into the salad she had prepared. From the smile that sprang up as she chewed, she was pleased by her work.

"Oh, speaking of getting into trouble," Yumi said, fidgeting in her seat. "Yoshino-san called earlier to ask us out tomorrow for lunch and shopping. Are you free?"

"Before going to your parents for dinner?"

"Yea. Lunch and afternoon with Yoshino-san and Rei-sama, then my house for dinner with Yuuki and my parents." Touko speared another piece of meat, and chewed it thoughtfully for a few moments. Yumi eyed the younger girl closely, not quite sure how to take the silence. Was she actually considering not going? "Are… you busy?" She asked tentatively.

"No, not particularly." Touko said, shrugging, a sort-of half smile on her lips. "I left the whole day open for you."

"Oh…" Yumi opened her mouth in a small 'o' and nodded. "I see. In that case, would you like to see if Aya-chan is free to join us tomorrow?"

Aya Kotomine, Touko's petite soeur from Lillian, was a sweet, energetic girl of twenty-five years. Currently working in her family's business (a flourishing computer company), the girl usually had weekends free to spend with friend. That is… when she wasn't stuck to a computer monitor.

Touko shook her head, a somewhat depressed tone now touching her features. "Unfortunately, she is busy tomorrow working on a new program. I was planning to have tea with her on Sunday."

"Oh! Well, that's good." Yumi said, smiling as her mental image of the playful girl came to mind. Everyone always said Aya and Yumi were similar. The two girls looked somewhat similar, as far as hair and eye color were concerned… but the main similarity was their matching personalities. Both girls were open books as far as expressing themselves physically was concerned. It was perhaps of that similarity that Touko had originally chosen the girl to give Yumi's rosary to. Needless to say, Yumi highly approved of Touko's choice of petite soeur. She had, at one point, been somewhat worried the younger girl's brashness and, what Yoshino had at one time described as Touko's 'prickly-ness', would put off a lot of potential soeurs.

In Aya Kotomine's case, it had been what attracted her to Touko, as it did Yumi the previous year.

It was because of the striking similarity that Aya and Yumi were called true 'grand-soeurs'. Even after Yumi left Lillian, the nick-name stuck.

"I miss her. We should find time to get together with her next time." Yumi remarked happily. She picked up a piece of beef with her fork and held it out at eye level, examining it.

"I will let her know. I'm sure Aya will be very pleased to hear that." Touko replied, taking a sip from her juice glass. "And please, stop changing the subject, Onee-sama."

Yumi blinked and dropped her fork, her eyes wide. "Uh…" She managed weakly.

"Whom did you meet?" The question was firm. She wouldn't budge.

Sighing, Yumi leaned forward and held her chin in her hands. "I didn't really  _meet_ anyone, Touko. I just… ran into someone today."

Touko raised an eyebrow. "Ran into someone? Who?"

Yumi actually laughed. "I mean, seriously,  _ran into_. I was going to get a coffee and I ran into this girl as I walked into the store. She spilled her coffee on my coat."

"Hmm." Touko made a noise in the back of her throat as she chewed on a forkful of potato, indicating for Yumi to continue.

"So, she offered to help get the stain out, and we talked for a while." Yumi shrugged in an attempt to end the conversation. "And that's it."

"And that's it? Nothing to add?" Touko pressed, her smirk back on her lips. Yumi returned the younger girl's gaze for a few long moments, and then gave in with another sigh. Check, and Mate.

"And… I gave her my business card. It was totally normal. At least… I thought so. Then she…" Yumi hesitated, not quite sure how to say it. "She messaged me just before you came." Slowly, feeling the weight of her embarrassment at being found out by the younger woman, she pulled out her phone from her pocket and handed it to Touko. The younger girl retrieved the phone and pressed a few toggles. After reaching the messages, Touko read through the most recent one and raised an eyebrow, a somewhat humored look adding to her smirk.

"My, my… it seems she might be interested in meeting again, this Maya."

Yumi groaned and put her forehead back onto the tabletop. "Don't remind me. What the hell, Touko? We just met today!"

"And what's wrong with that, Onee-sama? From the tone of this message, it doesn't seem anything less than friendly. You don't have to read more into it than that." She laughed softly, a short exhale through her nose. "Though, it seems she was quite taken with you. How old is she?"

"Twenty-eight, I believe."

Touko 'hummed' again thoughtfully, tapping the semi-rounded corner of Yumi's phone. "Have you replied her yet?"

"No… I'm not sure I should."

"Why not?"

Yumi opened her mouth to speak, only to find that she didn't know what to say. She rolled her head around to look sideways, away from her food and towards the doorway into simple dining room. From this angle, she could see right into her living room. She could even see her television, though angled slightly away from her. She pursed her lips and chose the best answer she could vocalize.

"I'm… not sure I should think about getting close to anyone else."

That brought Touko down a few steps. Yumi heard her set down her fork and sigh softly. After a long silence, the younger girl spoke. "I disagree, Onee-sama. I think getting to know someone else would be a step in the right direction for you. As things are now, everyone you know is well aware of… your particular circumstances. And while we know how to deal with it well enough, I believe sharing things with someone new might help you branch out and learn something new about yourself." She paused for a minute, choosing her words. "While I am not saying go out and find a girlfriend or something, I think meeting new people is a good thing for you. This Maya…" She stopped, obviously fishing for a complete name.

"Maya Sagara."

"Thank you. This Maya Sagara seems to be friendly enough. And you two met at a café. If you two go there often, maybe you can meet there and, dare I say, become friends."

Yumi turned her face back towards Touko, and saw the girls dark eyes gaze back into her brown eyes. She didn't even have to speak. After nine years of being soeurs with each other, Yumi and Touko knew more about each other than anyone else in the world. She told Touko everything, and she knew the girl never kept anything from her in return. It was a relationship she never really had with anyone in the past, and would never have again. There was only one Touko in Yumi's world.

And yet…

She couldn't bring herself to tell her about Maya's likeness to Sachiko.

Not because she was scared of how similar the two women were. She knew they were different people.

She couldn't tell her because she was scared of what Touko would think of her if she did.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 5**

"So, did you reply her message yet, Onee-sama?"

Yumi turned her attention away from the television towards Touko, who just walked into the living room in a long nightshirt, her hair damp and straightened. The girl padded over to Yumi, who was on the couch, and sat down next to her.

"Not yet. I'm still not sure if I should." Yumi replied quietly, facing the television again. Just before Touko entered the living room, Yumi had turned the channel from the late news to a comedy game show. She lowered the volume just a little to allow for a quieter, more comfortable atmosphere.

"Don't be silly. Of course you should." Touko chided from beside Yumi. "I told you it was a good idea, didn't I? Would you want to prove me wrong? Me, your cute, overworked petite soeur?"

"No, of course not." Yumi laughed, shaking her head. "I just… I don't know." Touko silently put her head on Yumi's shoulder, her still-damp hair sending a small chill down the older woman's arm.

"Very well. If you are uncomfortable, then you don't have to. I don't want to make you do something you don't want to do." Touko said, her condescending tone fading into understanding. "I just want you to be happy, Onee-sama. One way or another. You know what I think."

Yumi smiled and reached her arm around the other's neck, gently holding her to her in a comfortable embrace. "I know, Touko. I know." She said, resting her head on Touko's. "I'll think about it, alright?"

"That's all I ask, Onee-sama."

Later that evening, after the television had been turned off and the front door securely locked, Yumi and Touko climbed into bed. Yumi took her usual place on the right while Touko lay comfortably on the left. Yumi smiled happily as the younger woman nuzzled in close to her and, with a soft "Goodnight", she shut off the bedside lamp.

Touko had always been a quick sleeper and, sure enough, within minutes the girl was sound asleep. Yumi always found sleep somewhat difficult to find and oftentimes ended up listening to music from her MP3 player, or reading a book to pass the time.

This time, Yumi reached over and, careful not to disturb her bed-mate, keyed her phone to life. Its LED screen cast a soft blue glow over her face and, peering to the side, Yumi saw the back of Touko's head. Just in case the light happened to wake the woman up, she was at least facing away from Yumi.

Yumi brought up her received messages and opened the most recent one.

_Yumi Fukuzawa-san,_

_It was lovely meeting you today! You are an interesting person._

_I want to apologize again for spilling coffee on your coat. The stain should be gone, but if it is not let me know and I promise I will replace it for you._

_I wanted to ask if you frequented the cafe we met at often. Do you? If you do, maybe we will meet again._

_Have a lovely evening!_

_Maya_

Pressing her lips tightly together, Yumi pressed the 'reply' toggle and slowly typed out a response.

_Maya,_

_Thank you for your message. It was very nice meeting you today, as well._

_It's really no big deal about the coat. I want to thank you again for going through the trouble of cleaning it. I wouldn't have been able to do it that quickly… or that well, for that matter._

_As for that café… I actually go there pretty often. If you do as well… then I'm sure we will meet again._

_Have a good night._

_Yumi_

Swallowing as quietly as she could, Yumi hovered her thumb over the send toggle. Her heart pounded uncomfortably loud in her ears, and she was sure it was loud enough to wake Touko if it continued for much longer.

Was she really going to do this? Was the really going to send Maya a message? Was it bad to want to get closer… maybe to start a friendship with a girl who looks just like Sachiko? Was it wrong? Crazy? Would it hurt in the long run? What would people think, if they were to find out?

"To hell with it." Yumi said, and pressed the send button. At once, the notice 'Message sent' appeared with the date and time underneath it.

Taking a slow, steady breath, Yumi put her phone into standby mode and replaced it on her bedside stand.

As she relaxed her head back into her pillow, she felt Touko shift her body beside her. In response, Yumi pulled herself closer to the warmth coming from the younger woman and yawned tiredly.

It had been a very long day.

At least it was over.

0 – 0 – 0

 

_End of chapter 2_


	3. Chapter 3

**The Princess and the Sparrow**

_Chapter 3_

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 1**

One of Yumi Fukuzawa's favorite aspects of her home was not that is was particularly nice, or well-designed. It was, but that wasn't what Yumi liked best about it. If someone were to ask her "What do you like best about your home?" Yumi would smile, a satisfied sort-of smile, and reply with a definite-

"Its orientation."

At sunrise, the sun would rise in the east, over the houses on the opposite side of the street, and shine directly into Yumi's bedroom window. If the window's curtain was pulled back, a clear ray of warm sunshine would hover just beside Yumi's bed.

Most days, Yumi would just be waking up as the sun rose and she would just lay there, watching as the sunlight crept across the carpet towards the bedroom door. It would stop just before reaching the doorway, and it was at that time Yumi would pull herself out of bed and start her day.

On days where she actually had to do things, that is. On other days, she would simply go back to sleep. She was her own woman, after all. She could do what she very well liked.

This particular morning, however, Yumi lay in her bed under her warm quilt, Touko still sleeping soundly beside her. It was Saturday morning and aside from an afternoon plan with Yoshino and Rei, followed by a dinner with Yumi's family, she and her petite soeur didn't have much to do that day. They had the entire morning to themselves.

How long had it been, Yumi wondered, since both she and Touko had an entire morning to themselves?

Too long, really.

Just as Yumi started to decide how to spend the the morning, she felt Touko stir on her left. The girl shifted beside Yumi and, rolling her head around to face the older woman, cracked open one bleary eye.

"Onee-sama?" She croaked sleepily.

"Hmm?"

The girl tried to lift her head up off the pillow and hold it, but failed, letting it fall back with a soft grunt. "What time is it?" Came the muffled question. Yumi cast her eyes around the room and let her vision rest on her wall clock.

"Quarter past seven. I was just wondering what to do this morning. Any ideas?"

"Mmm... sleep."

Yumi had to laugh at that. It was so very 'Touko'. To all outwards appearances, the doctoral student was a near-perfect example of a 'proper woman'. She was polite, she knew how to handle all sorts of occasions (both 'fancy' as well as 'normal'), and was driven. Little did everyone know that behind closed doors, Touko was quite the bedbug. Once she got comfortable, there weren't many things that could move her.

Luckily, Yumi knew exactly what could do the trick "You sure?" She asked slowly. "Don't you even want to eat breakfast? I was considering baking some pastries."

That caused the girl to turn her head, cracking one eye up towards Yumi's grinning face. Her eye was open wide, and no longer had the tell-tale sign of sleep in it. "Pastries?" She asked, her mouth still pressed against the off-white pillow. Yumi nodded, pursing her lips happily.

"Yup. Some of Rei-sama's. She gave me the recipe a few weeks ago and I have been waiting for a good occasion to use it."

"What kind?"

"Egg tarts." Yumi replied smugly. She knew the girl loved egg tarts, and was especially pleased when her ears seemed to perk up at the idea of the sweet pastry.

"And why didn't you make them last week? Or the week before?"

"Well, both weekends you had to leave early. Today is the first day we have had almost completely free for a while." Yumi reasoned, feeling decidedly pleased with herself for holding onto this particular carrot and stick.

"Fair point well made, Onee-sama." Touko said and, with a light grunt, she pushed herself up on her hands. "Alright, I'll get up."

"Good girl." Yumi said soothingly. Touko righted herself on her side of the bed and, sitting up straight, stretched her arms above her head with a long sigh. Yumi watched the younger woman for a moment, and then pushed herself out of bed. Straightening her long T-shirt she often used to sleep in over her legs, she walked towards the door to the hallway. "I'll go ahead and get started on breakfast. You going to do your hair before or after?"

"Before. I'll come out when I'm finished with. Can I use your curler?"

Yumi laughed and opened the door. Not even bothering to turn around, she shouted over her shoulder as she turned down the hall towards the kitchen. "I bought it for you, Touko! You don't even have to ask!"

Breakfast was quiet as usual. Touko was so occupied with the egg tarts Yumi made that she barely spoke. At first, Yumi wasn't sure the recipe would go over well with the younger woman, what with the addition of cinnamon and apples to mix. But, sure enough, Rei was correct in adding to the recipe. The look Touko had as she bit into the flaky, yellow pastry was all the reward Yumi needed to attest to that.

After breakfast, the two women went to the living room and watched television (Cartoons! Kya!) as Touko worked at taming Yumi's light brown hair. First, she brushed away the sleep-induced tangles, and then attempted to gather her shoulder-length hair into two matching pony tails. After finishing her work, this time choosing a pair of indigo ribbons to tie up Yumi's hair, she sat beside the older girl and, after a few quiet minutes, cleared her throat.

"So…" She began slowly, an almost nonchalant tone permeating her voice. "Did you reply the message last night?"

Yumi heaved a sigh, making it much more theatric that was really necessary, and nodded, keeping her eyes on the television. "I did. How did you know?"

"I didn't, Onee-sama. It was just an educated guess." Touko said, her smirk audible through her tone. Again, the two woman fell silent as they watched the brightly colored cartoon characters chat away onscreen. Yumi had never really liked cartoons  _that_ much… but she had to admit, they were a great way to pass the time. And, occasionally, they were kind of cute.

As a commercial came on and interrupted the regular programming, Yumi shifted her eyes involuntarily towards her 'younger sister'. Was she not going to ask more about the message? Was she not interested? Or was she simply waiting for Yumi to elaborate? It wasn't as though Yumi wanted to let Touko know everything about her life. And even more so this new development of a girl that looked exactly like… well… someone Yumi was much better off not thinking about. She just wasn't sure if sharing every little bit of information about that was the best thing to do with Touko.

However, old habits were hard to break for Yumi. She had never kept anything from the younger girl, and, reaching into her robe's pocket for her phone, she figured it wouldn't really hurt to let Touko know a little more.

 _As long as she doesn't find out too much, that is._  Thought Yumi, chewing the inside of her cheek as she navigated her phone to the messages.  _Its fine as long as she doesn't find out about her looks._

Opening her messages, she was somewhat relieved to find that she had no new messages aside from Yoshino's latest text; which included the address of the tea house they were meeting at in a few short hours. Making a mental note to show Touko the address before getting ready to leave, she opened the short text thread between her and Maya and silently handed the phone off to Touko. The younger girl took the phone from Yumi and peered down at the words filling the screen. After a few moments, she scoffed lightly.

"No honorifics or family name? Wow… you  _are_  being quite forward, aren't you, Onee-sama."

If Yumi had some sort of retort planned out, she had forgotten it in lieu of sputtering in shock at the girl beside her. For a few seconds she simply opened and closed her mouth, and then managed to force some sounds out; neither making much sense to either of them. After closing her mouth and forcing herself to calm down with some long, slow breaths, Yumi narrowed her eyes at Touko.

"It's not like that, Touko." She said, only a little too coolly. Touko's eye flashed to the side, gauging her grande soeur's reaction, and shrugged.

"As you say. I apologize, Onee-sama. It is simply how you are." She said, her cheeks coloring as she looked back to the television. Yumi relaxed and leaned back into her couch, pocketing her phone again.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you." She said softly, and then laughed. "Wow, if I can't take a little teasing, maybe we shouldn't see Yoshino-san after all."

Touko tilted her head, considering the idea. "Knowing Yoshino-sama, she would break her plans just to come here and tease you. There is no way around it."

Yumi had to agree with that.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 2**

It turned out that the tea house Yoshino and Rei chose wasn't very far from Yumi's home. The drive itself only took about fifteen minutes, and parking only another two or three (Touko was forced to park her car, a four-door dark red sedan, in an adjacent parking lot belonging to a local supermarket). After returning to the tea house, Yumi entered, with Touko in tow, and walked up to the reception desk.

"Gokigenyou." A middle-aged woman standing behind the small desk greeted. Yumi felt a muscle in the cheek twitch at the greeting. Aside from the previous day and her unexpected use of the formal greeting, Yumi had managed to avoid both using and hearing it since graduating Lillian. Willing herself to overlook the word, she leveled a smile at the woman behind the desk. "How many are in your party today?"

"We are meeting people here." Yumi said. "Hasekawa-san and Shimazu-san?"

The woman checked her computer screen for a moment. Then- "Ah, yes. They are in room twelve now. Would you like someone to show you the way?"

"No thank you, we can manage."

With a polite bow both Yumi and Touko retreated from the entryway and went towards the game rooms in the back of the teahouse.

"Have you been here before, Onee-sama?" Yumi heard Touko ask behind her, a comfortable distance away.

"No. It does look pretty nice though."

And it did. The entire establishment was decorated very tastefully. While not very big, the layout of main room, in addition to the corridors going to different, smaller rooms, made it seem larger than it actually was. Yumi found herself noting the technique while walking through the traditional wooden hallways.

"I agree. I will have to think about bringing Aya here sometime."

"Because of all the Chinese stuff hanging around?" Yumi waved her hand, indicating the numerous decorations and paintings hanging on the walls. Most of it was recognizably Chinese in nature, whether by the writing or simply the art style. Aya, having minored in Mandarin in university, had a large interest in the language and culture.

"Yes. She might enjoy it."

"I think so, too." Yumi said agreeably and, rounding a corner, finally arrived at Yoshino and Rei's room. "Here we are." She said, stopping in front of the door. Touko stepped in front of Yumi and placed her hand on the doorknob.

"Allow me, Onee-sama." She said, turning the nob and opening the door. As she did, she stepped to the side, allowing the older girl to enter first. At once, Yumi was greeted by a rush of dark brown braids and a frantic voice.

"Yumi-san! Touko-chan! Heeeey!" The voice yelled happily. Before Yumi could even react, she was held in the petite, yet somehow vice-like grip of her best friend, Yoshino Shimazu.

"Y-Yoshino-san-" Yumi gasped against the other's hug. "You- Gah!" Even as she tried to talk, her friend gripped her tighter across her chest and back, pinning her arms to her side in the process.

"Jeez, girl! It's been too long! You need to call more, ya'know?" Yoshino said against the side of Yumi's head. "You look like you aged five years since I last saw you!"

"She might do just that if you squeeze her any harder, Yoshino." Came a cool, calm voice from behind Yoshino. Even in Yumi's panicky, strangled state, she could recognize Rei Hasekawa's voice coming to her rescue.

Slowly, reluctantly, Yoshino released Yumi and stepped back a few paces. "Yea, yea, alright." She said, a somewhat disappointed look on her face. "We wouldn't want our resident Yumi-san to get pre-maturely wrinkled, would we?"

Yumi ignored the remark and looked over her friend. Yoshino, much like the rest of the old Yamayurikai gang, hadn't changed all that much physically. She was still thin, a little pale, petite-looking, and she still preferred to sport braids. However, at the encouragement of her high school students (who knew what was popular in today's fashion), had changed her previous dual-braids into four different, somewhat shorted braids. Somewhere in the back of Yumi's mind, the part that she didn't care all that much about, she idly wondered if Lillian allowed Yoshino to have her hair like that, or if she just happened to get away with it. Nevertheless, the whole effect gave a 'younger-than-she-looked' atmosphere to the woman. Not that she was old, however- she and Yumi were both only twenty-seven, after all.

Turning her attention towards the older woman behind Yoshino, Yumi smiled at the welcoming expression on Rei's face. The twenty-eight year old physical education teacher hadn't changed a bit since high school. Aside from looking noticeably 'older', she still had short cropped hair, handsome features, and radiated an aura of grace. It was nice to know that some things never changed that much.

Yumi narrowed her eyes at Yoshino and sent a playful glare at her best friend. "I think that if I could get any wrinkles, I would have my fair share of them by now." She said tartly. "And I don't think  _your_ anticswould be able to top my charts, anyway." The fleeting look of embarrassment on Yoshino's face was priceless, but that's all it was; fleeting. Feeling a little sorry about her revenge on her friend, she gave Yoshino a light hug. "Good to see you too, Yoshino-san." The woman relaxed noticeably in her grip, and the two pulled apart.

After standing apart, the Yoshino leveled a friendly gaze at Touko, who still hadn't moved from her place beside the opened doorway (Had she stood away from the door on purpose?!). "Hi Touko-chan! How are ya?" She greeted happily.

"You're not going to try and glomp me too, Yoshino-sama?" Touko asked, a hint of a smile on her lips.

"Oh  _hell_ , no!" Yoshino said defiantly, her hands out in front of her protectively. "I still remember what happened last time. I'm just lucky that didn't leave a bruise…" She rubbed her side for a moment, and then stepped back into the small room, a wide smile back on her thin face. "Well, come on in! We can start now that we have four people."

Yumi and Touko entered the room, with the younger of the two shutting the door behind them, and sat down at the two empty chairs around the square gaming table. The room itself, Yumi noted as she set her bag down by her chair legs, was small. But, even with how small it was, the layout of the game table and the chairs fit four to six customers relatively comfortably. Apparently, these rooms were made for these kinds of small group occasions.

"It's good to see you again Rei-sama." Touko said politely as she sat herself to Yumi's right. Her seat, Yumi noticed, was closest to the doorway.

"You too, Touko-chan." The oldest of the women returned. She gave her hair the briefest of flicks, and cocked her head to the side. "New Year's, wasn't it?"

"It was… though is seems like a longer time has passed."

Yumi looked between her petite soeur and the older woman, their short conversation bringing the holiday memory to the forefront of her mind. Because each of them were busy during Christmas for one reason or another, everyone decided to get together for a New Year's party a week later. It had been a great party, complete with the entire gang from Lillian Academy and then some. Yumi, Touko, Rei, Yoshino, Nana, Shimako, Noriko, Kimi Takeda (Noriko's petite soeur from school), and Aya were all there. Even Sei Satou, the eldest of them all and a fully published writer these days, attended. Additionally, they had all decided to get together at Yumi's house, much to her behest. However, even with how busy it had made her and how dirty her home became, Yumi hadn't been able to remember a time where she had more fun. Not since she had attended Lillian as a high school student.

Luckily, everyone had been kind enough to stay and help clean up the next morning. It would have been a large headache with just her and Touko.

The memory of the night brought about the glaring absence of certain members of their group to Yumi. "Speaking of New Year's…" She wondered aloud, getting the attention of the others. "Why aren't Shimako-san and the others joining us today?"

Yoshino was the first to answer. "Shimako-san said she was busy with work today." She said, only slightly preoccupied with an electronic keypad attached to the game table. "She and Noriko-chan both."

"Oh…"

"And Nana-chan?" Touko asked.

"Nana-chan had to see her parents today." Rei leaned forward, saving Yoshino the trouble of answering. "So it's just us. Unless Aya-chan…?" She trailed off, rolling her eyes around to rest on Touko. The younger girl shook her head decidedly.

"She's busy today as well."

"Ah. Too bad."

Yumi felt herself deflate a little as she watched the exchange. One of the worst parts of getting older and having more responsibilities, she figured out, was not having enough time to dedicate to yourself or your friends. Additionally, with everyone (except for Touko) already graduated and integrated into the working world, having everyone match up their schedules to meet was a rarity. While somewhat depressing at times, Yumi also knew it was how the world worked. She just had to accept it and do the best she could.

That still didn't mean it didn't hurt though, not being able to see her friends when she wanted to. Her friends meant more to her than anything else in the world. On par with her family, even.

 _Well, except for Yuuki._  Yumi thought, smirking to herself.  _They can keep him._

Yumi's attention was turned back towards Yoshino, who was talking to her. "I'm sorry, what was that?" She asked.

"I was asking you if you were ready to start a game?" Yoshino repeated. Yumi looked at the mahjong table in front of her, and suddenly realized that, aside from a few other empty stools and side tables, the room was empty. Where was the food?

"Uh… weren't we going to have lunch, as well?" Yumi asked tentatively. While she had never been to this particular tea house before, she had been to one like it. Food and snacks were usually quite pricy at these kinds of places.

Even as she was asking the question, she saw Rei lean down below the table, and grab her back from beside her chair. Setting the light yellow, quite likely (knowing the owner) self-designed bag on the table, Rei opened it and begun withdrawing numerous smaller packages from within. "Already taken care of." She said with a smile.

"Sandwiches?" Yumi asked, leaning over the table to get a closer look. Each package was wrapped in differently colored handkerchiefs, but the size was about right for sandwiches. Apparently, from Rei and Yoshino's matching nods, she assumed correctly.

"Indeed. I wanted to show you some new combinations I have been working on." Rei explained as she finished pulling out the carefully wrapped food. There were altogether eight separately wrapped packages. Enough, Yumi quickly determined, for two sandwiches each. "In the green is rosemary-ricotta-pesto with apple slices. " She indicated to two of the sandwiched wrapped in mint-green cloth. "In the red are cheese and tomato melts. The orange has ham and cheese focaccia with apricot sauce. And…" She finally pointed to the last pair, wrapped in a clean sky-blue cloth. "The blue has cheese and vegetable medley."

Yumi couldn't help it; she let out an appreciative whistle. "Wow, you outdid yourself Rei-sama." The older girl shrugged, but remained silent.

"And…" Yoshino said slowly, reaching into her bag. "Tada! I brought this!" With a flourish, she whipped out a large thermos. "And guess what's inside?"

"Tea?" Touko asked, her eyebrow arched.

"Duh. I meant what kind of tea?"

"Oolong tea?"

Yoshino blinked rapidly for a moment, and then glared at the younger girl. "Jeez, what are you psychic or something?" She grumbled, putting the thermos on the table and sitting down with a loud 'humph!'

"Welcome to my world." Yumi said, barely containing her laughter. It was about time someone else got the brunt end of Touko's super-intuition. Maybe, if she decided to give up being a doctor, she could have a career in being some sort of magical girl?

"Yea, yea." Yoshino grumbled, but let it slid with a wave of her hand. "So, are we playing or what?" With that she pressed a button on the keypad next to her. With a quiet 'wirr' of an electric motor, the center of the table opened.

"Uwah!" Yumi was unable to suppress the cry of surprise that escaped her lips, and immediately felt her ears prickle with embarrassment. No matter how old she got and what she went through, some of her old habits never really went away. The amused looks on all the other women in the room were evidence of that. Even as she got her breathing under control again, she watched as a full set of mahjong tiles (already lined up in a square) appeared from the inside of the table. After the opening closed again, Yumi clapped her hands together excitedly. "Wow! That was so cool! It's an automatic Mahjong table!"

"That's exactly why I chose this place. Every other place I know of makes you line up the tiles by hand." Yoshino said proudly, her nose up in the air. "I thought this was much more fun."

"Impressive." Touko agreed, reaching over for the thermos and unscrewing the cap. "Did you remember to bring cups, Yoshino-sama?" With a scoff, the other withdrew four matching teacups (light pink, plastic ones) and handed them over to Touko. "Thank you." She said, and began serving the tea to the older women.

As she carefully poured the tea and handed the cups to herself, Rei and Yoshino, Yumi couldn't help the smile of pride that crept across her face. Touko was, hands down, perhaps the best petite soeur ever. Maybe it was biased of her to say, but Yumi honestly thought she couldn't have picked a better soeur even if she had another year to pick. She had been lucky to meet Touko.

"By the way, Onee-sama..." Touko said offhandedly as she placed a teacup in front of Yumi. Yumi picked up the cup and was about to take sip- "Has Sagara-san replied your message yet?"

-when she completely missed her mouth, sending the tea dribbling down to the wooden floor, barely missing her coat along the way.

_Nevermind. I take it back. I take it all back. She is a devil. A devil who delights in torturing me. I should have gone with someone else as a soeur. Anyone else. Someone nice and cute like Aya-chan..._

"S-Sagara-san?" Yoshino said, stuttering a little. Yumi had her eyes on the table, but she could hear the surprise that permeated her friends voice. "Sagara-who? Who-Sagara? Huh?" Her questions were pretty unintelligible, but the meaning was clear.

Touko chose to elaborate. "Someone Onee-sama bumped into yesterday. I'm not quite sure as to the circumstances, but apparently this 'Sagara-san' was quite taken with Onee-sama." While Yumi couldn't see the younger woman's face, as she was looking down into her now-emptied teacup, she instinctively knew she was smiling. "It seems they are curious, Onee-sama. Shouldn't you elaborate a little?"

Yumi glanced up, and caught the others' eyes. As expected, they ranged from excited curiosity, surprise, all the way to Touko's smug amusement. She knew that her 'younger sister' did these kinds of things in good fun (usually), but that still didn't make it any less was supposed to be a secret, after all! Yumi hadn't even decided what to do about it... if anything! For all she knew, Maya Sagara would never reply her message, and never meet her again. And here was Touko, doing her damnedest to spread the news around to everyone and their mothers!

 _For Maria-sama's sake_... Yumi thought, suppressing a groan as she fingered her phone in her coat pocket. "It's... nothing really big." She said slowly, carefully. "I ran into someone... Sagara-san yesterday, and we exchanged phone numbers. Well-" She corrected herself. "I gave her my business card and she messaged me a greeting last night."

" _She?"_ Yoshino breathed, her dark eyes alight with excitement.

"Yes. She." Yumi sighed and poked her teacup with her finger gently. "Anyway, I replied her greeting last night. That's it."  _Okay? Thats it. Let's drop it, alright_? Yumi silently slid her teacup over to Touko, her eyes narrowed in annoyance with the younger girl. Not saying anything, but keeping her thin smile, Touko dutifully refilled the cup and placed it gently back in front of the brown-haired woman.

"What does she do?" Rei asked. A good question, but one Yumi wasn't all that keen on getting into.

"She is a writer." Yumi said after a moment of hesitation. They wouldn't be able to get much off that, most likely. As long as they stopped talking about it. It really wasn't that important of a topic, anyway.

"So... she didn't reply you?" Yoshino pressed, her hands holding her chin up.

"I said that's it." Yumi said, her tone silently telling the others to drop the subject. Rei, placing a hand on her cousin's shoulder, shook her head silently. Yoshino sighed and, taking the hint in stride, attempted to change the subject.

"Alright, well…" She said, gesturing to the waiting Mahjong tiles on the table. "Shall we get started? The mall is waiting after I beat you all!"

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 3**

To no one's surprise (and Yoshino's disappointment), Touko ended up winning most of the rounds of Mahjong. This was mainly because Aya, being the person who introduced everyone to the game, was the woman's petite soeur. Needless to say she, out of everyone currently present, had the most experience.

Not to mention she was quick as a snake in grabbing matching suits from the discard pile. Even Rei, with her martial arts-honed reflexes, was no match.

After a full two hours of playing, eating, drinking, and chatting, the group left the tea house with the local mall as their next destination. Rei and Yoshino took the older cousin's honey-yellow coupe, and Yumi and Touko followed them at a safe distance in Touko's sedan. After a relatively uneventful and quiet drive (Yumi was still slightly miffed at the younger woman bringing up the subject of Maya Sagara with Rei and Yoshino), the two carpools reached the large parking lot of Shinami Mega Mall.

The Shinami Mega Mall was relatively new, only five years, and was the closest large shopping center to Yumi's house. As a result, when the woman had something to buy for work or personal reasons, she often took the bus there. The fact that the largest investor of the mall complex was, in fact, the Ogasawara group first put Yumi off going there for a full three years. But, after finally swallowing her pride in favor of practically one-stop shopping, she found the place to be overall a great place to spend time.

With friends, that is. She still refused to go there alone.

Yumi got out of Touko's car and, hoisting her bag over her shoulder, nodded to Yoshino as she skipped over to meet them. "Alright! Here we are, out for an afternoon of frolic and shopping!" The woman said, her braids whipping around in her excitement.

"Excited much?" Yumi asked, her eyebrow raised in curiosity. Whenever she and Yoshino got together over the weekend, the pair more often than not went shopping at this very mall. And while it wasn't very uncommon for her best friend to be excited about buying things, today she seemed a bit more overenthusiastic. "Got something special in mind?"

Yoshino shrugged and skipped ahead, a few paces in front of Yumi, Touko and Rei. "Not really." She said offhandedly. "Maybe a new shirt… some cute pants… a bag and some hairclips…" She ticked off the items on her fingers as she listed them.

Yumi snorted a laugh and shook her head.  _How about the whole mall, Yoshino-san?_ But, even as she mentally chastised the girl, she had to smile. Yoshino's enthusiasm was one of the things she loved most about her.

As they entered the mall, they were greeted by the sounds of numerous shoppers as they meandered in every direction. Some going from store to store, some exiting the mall, some simply passing by or resting as benches littered around. Most of them were families with children, as the entire area was mainly a residential district. But there were a number of younger people, students and young adults, as well as a handful of older people walking around.

Yumi stopped and spotted the directory not far off from the entrance. "There's the directory." She said, pointing. "We can decide what we want to look at and plan accordingly." As the group approached the map, Yumi heard Yoshino snicker from beside her.

"'Plan accordingly'?" She mimicked, her voice oozing sarcasm. "Since when did you turn into Touko-chan?" Yumi glanced at her friend and sighed. On Yoshino's other side, Rei shrugged and smiled, a clear sign of apology towards Yumi.

Before Yumi could even muster a comeback, however, Touko was right there with her cool, modulated tone. "What I believe Onee-sama means, Yoshino-sama, is that she and I are meeting her family later for dinner. Because of that, we do not want to spend all day here. Because it is already quarter to three, we can only spend about two hours here before we have to leave." It was said simply and matter-of-factually, leaving no room for discussion.

"And there you have it." Yumi said, stopping in front of the mall directory. "Should be alright though; I only have a few things I want to pick up anyway."

Yoshino grumbled and crossed her arms over her chest, her lips puckered in mild disappointment. After a moment, she sighed and lowered her arms. "Tch. Fine." She said. "I want to go here, here and here." She pointed to a few different stores. Each one happened to be on the second floor of the mall.

Rei stepped up to the map and sighed thoughtfully. "I'm pretty open to wherever you want to go." She said after a moment. "I don't have anything I particularly need. I'll follow you guys." Yumi nodded and turned her head towards Touko, who had a thoughtful expression on her face.

"Did you have anything in mind, Touko?" Yumi asked. Touko scanned the directory for a while, and then turned to the rest of the group.

"Not particularly, Onee-sama. I did have a reference book I wanted to find, however." She pointed to a general-use bookstore on the third floor of the mall. "I think this should be alright. I need a reference book for one of my courses. While I don't think I can't find anything at this particular bookstore… it's worth a look."

Yumi nodded and turned back to the directory. "Well, in that case, I think Touko can go ahead and look for her book while the three of us-" She looked at Yoshino and Rei on her other side. "Peruse through a few shops on the second floor." Yoshino and Rei both nodded, and Yumi turned back to Touko. "Do you want to come and find us after you look for your book? Just call me and I'll tell you what store we are in."

"That sounds fine, Onee-sama. I'll see you soon." Touko said and, with a short bow to the trio of older women, she took off towards the nearest escalator, leaving the others in a slightly bewildered state.

After a few moments, Yumi shrugged and cleared her throat. "Ah well- she'll call me when she's done. Shall we hit the first shop?"

Yumi was never a very great shopper. Yes, she was a girl. And yes, she loved a cute pair of shoes as much as the next… well, maybe not as much as those girls that frequent  _Shibuya_  but… one would get the idea. But, the point was that if Yumi didn't have someone there to point out what was fashionable and not-so-fashionable, she would likely get a pair of pants that went out of fashion a number of years ago and not realize it until she noticed the younger women snickering at her. She didn't really care, most of the time. After all, she spent most of her time either at a drafting board, sleeping, on her couch, or out with friends.

And it's the 'out with friends' part that mattered most to her. She didn't really care what she wore when she was on her own, but Yumi wouldn't be caught dead in the act of embarrassing her friends by dressing like she was still in college. Not if she could help it.

The only problem with buying new clothes was…

"Yuuuumi-san! Try this! Oh no, no, no! This! Or maybe this? No, that doesn't match your eyes. You should try this instead! Eww- that looks like a box of crayons threw up on your chest. Next!"

As Yoshino dashed from rack to rack, her arms laden with seemingly random articles of clothing ranging from tops, to trousers, to coats and the occasional scrap of underwear (which would earn the overenthusiastic woman a sardonic groan from Yumi, and a headshake from Rei), Yumi had to admit that as a shopping-mate, no matter how much she loved the girl, Yoshino could definitely improve. Even Rei seemed to know this as she watched from a safe distance, occasionally glancing over at the younger women and laughing softly to herself.

And that was when Yoshino didn't try and overstep her boundaries. Unlike this time.

"Y-Yoshino-san… seriously, I think you can slow down." Yumi stammered, holding her arms across her chest defensively. Yoshino held a top in her hand, a rather  _skimpy_ one at that, and was inching her way towards Yumi with a wolf-like grin on her face. "We still have lots of time to look around."

But Yoshino wouldn't have any of it. She shook her head and, if at all possible, her grin became more menacing. "Oh  _no_ , Yumi-san." She whispered as she closed in. "I have waiting a long time to get you out shopping. We are getting you into some  _hot_  outfits!" Yumi backed up and turned to run out of the store, but was deftly held in place by a pair of firm hands on her shoulders. She turned to look up and saw Rei, smiling her usual warm smile down at her.

"R-Rei-sama?" She gasped. "Not you, too?"

"Sorry, Yumi-chan. You know how she can be." Rei shrugged, but held her grip on Yumi's shoulders. "Best to just let it happen."

Suddenly, it occurred to Yumi that Yoshino and Rei had likely planned this from the very beginning. The calling her last night, inviting her out for the day, starting at the tea house to put her off guard… it was all for this. They wanted to get Yumi some new clothes. And probably clothes that she wouldn't have picked out herself.

She should have been mad. She should have been put out by her friends' subterfuge. But, as she felt herself pulled towards the changing rooms by Yoshino (Rei followed them, her arms full of clothes), she felt happy. Happy her friends cared about her enough to do so much for her. Happy that they could spend their valuable time with her. Happy they stayed with her so long. Happy that they loved her.

Smiling, Yumi let herself be forced into the large dressing room. After all, for the love of her friends, she could put up with being their dress-up doll.

For just this once, at least.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 4**

"Hey Yumi. Nice to see you, Touko-san." Yuuki greeted as Yumi and Touko stood at the front door to Yumi's parent's house. He eyed his sister and Touko for a moment, and then stepped aside, allowing them to enter.

"Thank you Yuuki-san." Touko said as she followed her grande soeur inside. "It is nice to see you again."

Yumi led the way into the kitchen, were her mother and father waited. When she entered the large room, her parents immediately got to work welcoming their daughter home.

"Yumi! Touko-chan! It's so good to see you!" Yumi's mother gushed happily, scrambling off her oven mitts and catching both of the younger women in a hug. "I haven't seen you since Christmas!" The woman said to Touko, who was coloring a bit at the attention. "And you!" She stepped back and glared at Yumi, her hands on her hips. "You need to come home more. I know you have your own home but  _honestly_! I thought I raised you better than that!"

Yumi shrugged and turned to her father, returning his soft smile. The eldest Fukuzawa didn't bother to get up, but waved at the two women. "Evening Yumi. Touko-chan. Dinner will be ready as soon as your mother stops scolding you and finishes the fish." At his comment, his wife whirled on him, her finger pointed directly at his nose.

"Don't encourage her! It gets lonely here, being the only woman in the house."

Yumi laughed and walked over to the sink, turning on the tap and washing her hands. "I'll help finish dinner, mom." She said. After drying her hands, she looked at Touko. "Touko, how about you keep my father and Yuuki company? There should be some tea somewhere around here…" She trailed off with a wave of her hand. Touko walked over to the cupboard near the stove and opened it, peering inside.

"Still the same place, Fukuzawa-sama?" She asked, even as she grabbed the box of tea from the shelf.

Yumi mother gasped and put her hand over her chest. A very theatrical gesture- one Yumi couldn't help but notice with a grin. "Touko-chan! How many times do I have to tell you?" She asked, her tone appalled. Though humorously so. "You're family! You must call me 'Mommy!'" Yumi's father chuckled a bit at that, and walked out of the kitchen into the living room.

"Of course, Fukuzawa-sama. I know that." Touko laughed. She carefully filled the teapot with water and placed in on the stove, flicking on the heat with a turn of the dial. "If Onee-sama tells me to, I will." She said, throwing a glance at Yumi out of the corner of her eye. Yumi's mother turned to Yumi, who had begun working on the fish beside the sink.

"Well?" The older woman pressed her daughter.

"Absolutely not. Touko's mine." Yumi replied smugly. "If you want another daughter, you should talk to Dad about that." She had to stifle the giggle that threatened to escape her as her mother grumbled something about 'being too old' and joined her daughter at the fish.

Dinner was fairly lively at the Fukuzawa household, as opposed to the relatively quiet atmosphere at Yumi's house. With both Yuuki and their father there to talk 'work', as well as their mother present to chat with both Yumi and Touko, there was obviously a lot of conversation going on around the dinner table. It was all fairly normal and manageable to Yumi. That was, until the topic of their new project was brought up.

"So, I heard you guys landed the Onoga contract." Yumi's father said, his tone satisfied. "I'm proud of you two. With that job, we should be set professionally for a good long while."

Yumi's eyes reflexively shot towards Touko, who was calmly stirring a bowl of miso. Touko, being the only daughter of the Matsudairas, grew up with a general knowledge about the business practices of her family, as well as close relatives to her family. While Yumi knew Touko's family was at  _least_  two or three, maybe even four, members removed from the Ogasawaras, it still didn't mean the girl was completely out of the professional loop. Could she be familiar with Onoga? Would she know about their cooperation with the Ogasawara Group?

What would she say or think if she knew?

From the lack of reaction from the girl, Yumi assumed that she didn't in fact know. At least there was one less thing to worry about.

"Yea! It was great!" Yuuki said excitedly after taking a swallow from his glass. "He wants a summer home, so I don't think it'll be all that difficult. Right Yumi?"

Yumi eyed Touko for a few more moments, and then turning to her father and Yuuki, shrugging. "Probably not. I haven't designed anything quite that large yet, outside of The Sims." She added, giggling a little. In her many meetings with Aya, she had gotten her hands on the video game 'The Sims', which she had spent many long hours on her computer at home with. Her favorite part was, unsurprisingly, designing new houses using the program. "But I should be able to handle it."

Her father nodded thoughtfully. "More than one story?" He asked, more to Yuuki than Yumi. Yuuki, after all, handled most of the project details.

"Dunno yet." Yuuki shrugged. "It was just yesterday. Later next week is when I'll hammer out all the details and get more info about the client's ideas."

Yumi poked her portion of fish with her chopsticks, more out of boredom than hunger. "Just let me know when you have it. You can drive over to my place and give me the details. I'll get to work on it right away."

"No problem." Yuuki said decidedly. Their father nodded at the exchange, happy that his children worked so well together. Their mother looked equally as happy as she silently went back and forward between her children. After a few moments, Touko cleared her throat.

"So after the new project begins, will you be very busy, Onee-sama?" She asked, her eyes flashing towards Yumi.

The older girl shrugged again. "Not sure. You'll be the first to know my schedule."

Touko nodded after a few long moments, content with the older woman's answer, and continued quietly eating. Yumi's shoulders relaxed and she released a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. Luckily, from what it seemed, all Touko was concerned with in Yumi's new contract was that she had free time.

And, secretly (or not so secretly), that's pretty much what Yumi cared about as well.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 5**

Touko was usually a quiet driver. When in the car with her, the only sound one would hear would be the sound of the radio, idle conversation between passengers, or the ambient sound of the engine as it hummed quietly. As the doctoral student put it after she got her license, "If you have the time to talk, you have the time to pay attention to the road." Yumi, having gotten her license the year before Touko did (but still didn't have a car), more or less agreed with her.

But, Yumi being Yumi, didn't really like silence. It wasn't like the hated it, but it just bugged her. Silence was one of those things that seemed to pick at your subconscious until it drove you crazy. Like Chinese water torture, that blinking light that flashes at you while you try to sleep, or an annoying little brother. It was because of this that whenever either Yumi or Touko drove, she would try her best to strike up some sort of conversation. It didn't really matter what, as long as Yumi could talk to alleviate the silence.

But, for this drive back to Yumi's home, Touko was being her characteristically quiet, composed driver. Yumi tried to prod some sort of response from the younger girl a few times, but the most she was able to get was a few noncommittal grunts.

Touko pulled up to a red light, and Yumi was starting to feel more uncomfortable with the silence until her petite soeur finally spoke. "Onee-sama, were you planning on telling me about the contract with Daisuke Onoga-sama?"

Yumi blinked in mild shock at the girl sitting in the driver's seat. "Daisuke?" She asked slowly. Only a moment after saying the name, it all clicked into place. Onoga. Daisuke Onoga. Her client. Of course Touko knew about him. Why wouldn't she? She knew everything.

"Daisuke Onoga-sama, yes. The head of the Onoga Financial Organization. They work in part, or mutual cooperation, with the Ogasawara Group. Started thirty-two years ago by Daisuke Onoga-sama's father, Honda Ogona-sama, they grew to operate from central Japan all the way to the Hokkaido region. Ten years ago, they partnered with the Ogasawara Group in order to broaden their influence around different parts of the country and further their development into the private sector." All of this was said while Touko stared straight ahead, her eyes on the road. The light flicked green and she accelerated, silence once again reigning in the car.

After passing another whole block, Yumi finally decided to speak. "I was going to say something to you. But, it was only decided yesterday and… well…" She floundered, shrugging her shoulders. "I was going to say something." She settled on those words, holding onto them like a lifeline.

"I'm not angry, Onee-sama." Touko said softly. "I just want to be clued in on what you do. I know you have your own life-" She gripped the steering wheel tighter, her eyes never leaving the road. "I just want to be a part of it. I want you to  _let me_  be a part of it."

"I know, Touko. I want you to be part of my life as well. Believe me- I want you to know everything." Yumi said. She knew Touko was a strong girl who was fully capable to doing just about anything she put her mind to. But, at the same time she knew how vulnerable the younger woman could be. Yumi knew, better than anyone else in the world, what Touko could and could not handle. "You are everything to me, Touko."

Touko slowed her car and pulled up to another red light. This time, she turned her head towards Yumi, looking into her eyes. The look she had was stern, but at the same time held a concern that caused Yumi's heard to pump painfully in her chest. "Then, do you have anything else to tell me, Onee-sama?" She asked.

Yumi stared back at Touko for a long while, both not looking away from each other. Yumi felt the thumping in her chest as she pondered what to say, if anything. What did Touko want? Did she want her to tell her more about the meeting with Onoga? What kind of man was he? Why they accepted the job? Did Touko not want Yumi to have anything to do with the Ogasawara Group at all?

Or was it something else?

Did she feel that something was wrong with Yumi? Did Touko know something that Yumi did not? If so, what?

Yumi slowly shook her head. "N-no… I don't have anything else to tell you."

Touko considered Yumi's answer for a moment, and then nodded. With the light turning green again, she pushed the car silently forward. Another quiet fifteen minutes later, she pulled her car into Yumi's driveway, and shut off her engine.

"I'm going to go see Doctor Kimigura tomorrow morning." Yumi stated, looking out of the window. It was a clear night, but there still was some loose snow around; generally on the grass and the random planters littering the side of the roads. Tomorrow was just as likely to be as nice as that evening. "It's a little early but… there are some things I want to talk to her about."

Touko turned towards Yumi, a slightly surprised look on her face. "Really? Are you feeling alright?"

"I'm alright. I just…" Yumi shrugged again. "Would like to talk to her about some things." If Yumi could hear herself in a recording, even she would know she was being obvious. But, there wasn't much she could really do about it. Touko, luckily, was clever enough to not ask too much of her grande soeur.

"I see." Her eyes drifted down to her lap, a suddenly self-conscious expression creeping into her features. "Do… you want me to stay another night?"

"Eh? N-no!" Yumi waved her hands in front of her. "You don't have to do that. You need to go home and prepare for your meeting with Aya-chan tomorrow." Suddenly, she laughed. "Besides, you don't even have a fresh change of clothes."

"I can always wash them." Touko said pointedly. "You  _do_  have a washing machine, Onee-sama."

"No, seriously Touko. You should go home tonight. I'll be fine. I was just going to do some sketching anyway."

Touko eyed her 'older sister' for a few long moments, and then nodded shortly. "Very well. I shall do just that. I will tell Aya you said 'hi', and that you would like to see her soon."

Yumi smiled and opened her door, stepping outside into the cold air. "Sounds great. Then, have a nice night." Touko nodded again, her lips in a tight smile. Yumi was about to shut the door when she caught herself, seeing the somewhat hurt expression on the girl's face. Touko wanted to be part of her life, and knew everything about it. On the other hand, she had many other parts of her life that she needed to juggle. Her family, her schoolwork, her job, Aya… not only Yumi.

But still.

"Touko." Yumi said softly. The younger woman looked up from her lap and locked gazes with Yumi.

"Yes, Onee-sama?"

"Could you pick me up and drive me to Doctor Kimigura's office tomorrow?"

Touko smiled; a bright smile that, in the soft glow of her car's interior lighting, allowed Yumi to barely make out the woman's flushed cheeks. It was a smile that showed others that Touko knew she was being helpful to her Onee-sama. That she was part of her life. That she was there, going through all the fun times as well as the hard times, together with Yumi. A smile that filled Yumi's heart with a comfortable warmth, even as the chilly January breeze did its best to cut through her winter coat.

After rubbing her check with her right hand, Touko nodded and cleared her throat. "If you like, Onee-sama."

0 – 0 – 0

_End of Chapter 3_


	4. Chapter 4

**The Princess and the Sparrow**

_Chapter 4_

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 1**

What was it about visiting the psychiatrist, thought Yumi as she stared out of the passenger-side window of Touko's sedan, that filled one with a sense of depression and anxiety? Was it because you often talked about things you didn't necessarily  _want_ to talk about anywhere else? Wasn't that the whole point of going to a therapist, though? To talk about things you usually avoided to get them off your chest? God, if that was true, where do the psychiatrists go to get things off  _their_ chests?

Those people must get paid a fortune.

Yumi distantly felt the car pull to a stop in front of a short, two-story building. The dull, rust-colored bricks had a good amount of soot and dirty snow encrusted on them. Somewhat odd, Yumi mused as she trailed her eyes around the foundation of the old building, because just the other day they had a fresh flurry of snow. Shrugging to herself, she turned towards her driver. "Thank you for the ride, Touko." She said, giving the woman a smile.

"Of course, Onee-sama." Touko replied, returning the older woman's gesture with a thin smile of her own. "It was my pleasure." She leaned forward and cast a glance up at the building Yumi would be entering in just a few minutes. "What time it your appointment again?"

Yumi cast a glance at her wristwatch, twisting her hand around in order to properly see the dial. "Eleven." She said. "I still have a good twenty minutes." Touko nodded and sat back in her seat.

"Want me to stay with you until your appointment begins?"

"No." Yumi said firmly, her tone chastising. " _You_ , Touko, have your own appointment to get to. You need to go and meet Aya-chan. And I'll be damned if you are late for that sweet girl because of your crazy Onee-sama."

Touko's dark eyes flashed and she opened her mouth as if to argue, but shut it before she even began. She shot the older woman a soft glare, one Yumi knew that meant 'You, Onee-sama, aren't crazy.' There was silence in the car for a long minute, and Yumi felt the sudden sensation of a mildly annoying prickle in the back of her neck. She reached up the scratch the area, but it wouldn't go away. It just dulled slightly. After another moment, she heaved a sigh.

"Sorry, Touko. I didn't mean that." She apologized. "But seriously. Don't be late to see Aya-chan. She may cry."

The other was silent for another few seconds, and then relaxed. "I suppose you are right. She is quite prone to outbursts like that." She said with an airy snort. She glanced at the dashboard clock and pursed her lips, making a few quick calculations in her mind. "Do you want me to pick you up afterwards then?"

Yumi considered the offer, but shook her head in reply. "Nah. I'll snag a bus back home. It'll give me a good opportunity to... what did Kimigura-sensei refer to it as?" She snapped her fingers and waved her other hand around the car's interior dramatically. "Ah yes. Reflect. It will give me a good opportunity to reflect on the session."

Touko nodded, accepting Yumi's decision. "Alright then. I'll call you tonight, Onee-sama."

Yumi opened her door and, grabbing her purse, slid out of the car. "Sure. Say 'hi' to Aya-chan for me." She said as she moved to shut the door.

"Of course." Touko said, smiling. "Have a good day."

With a muffled 'whump', the passenger door closed and Yumi stepped back from the car. Touko gave one last wave and directed the car out of the small parking lot. There Yumi stood for another few seconds, watching the car until it rounded a corner out of her vision. Then, taking a deep breath, she walked in the front door of Emi Kimigura's office.

The interior of the office was vastly different from the exterior. From the outside, and how old the building looked, one would assume the building was more than fifteen years old. But, when the building was leased out it underwent a large amount of interior decorating and renovation. The outside was left well enough alone, due to the building regulations in the surrounding district. However, the inside was another story. The inside was all new, modern, and attractive. The main lobby was a mix of soft cream colors and grays, typical of most offices, and filled with assorted sculptures and paintings. These, Yumi had learned after a few initial visits, were all owned by Doctor Kimigura herself and were used to elicit a feeling of relaxation to her patients as they waited for their appointment to begin.

Squaring her shoulders and straightening her coat, Yumi approached the front desk.

"Ah! Good morning Fukuzawa-san." The receptionist, a young-looking and attractive woman, said. She smiled widely as Yumi stopped in front of the desk. "Here for your appointment?"

"Ah... yea." Yumi said after a moment's hesitation. Just what else  _would_ she be there for, anyway? "I'm still a few minutes early, though."

"That's alright." The other said. "Kimigura-sensei is just finishing up some work from her last appointment. If you don't mind waiting, she should finish soon." She gestured towards the few couches that littered the room, indicating that Yumi should make herself comfortable. Yumi nodded and chose the couch she usually sat at while waiting for her appointment to start.

Sighing to herself, and realizing that she had been sighing  _a lot_  these past few days, Yumi made herself comfortable on the edge of the couch. After setting her purse between her leg and the armrest, she glanced at the digital wall-clock. She still had roughly ten minutes until eleven.

Slowly bringing her eyes around the room, she idly took in the environment. Nothing had really changed from her last visit. The esoteric pieces of artwork were still hanging around, the somewhat outdated magazines (which seemed, to Yumi, to be in almost every doctor's office around the world) were still there, the same friendly receptionist...

Yumi had, at one time, considered chatting up the somewhat younger girl sitting behind the desk. Obviously no older than twenty five, maybe fresh out of college- or at least by a couple years- the girl was quite pretty. Short cropped black hair, round dark blue eyes, a thin but still approachable face... it had taken but a single time of idle conversation between her and Yumi before she realized that she just wasn't ready to move on yet. That had been about a year ago, and Yumi had not tried again with the girl since.

And speaking of girls…

Yumi narrowed her eyes at the cover of a magazine perched just beside her, on a coffee table to the left of the couch. It was a popular magazine aimed at fairly young, high school and college-aged women. Not that she often read it; in fact, she sometimes leafed through copies second-hand from Touko's petite soeur, Aya (the girl had a subscription). The articles were fairly interesting… but other than that, Yumi didn't go out of her way to read it.

As she stared at the model on the front of the magazine, she surprisingly found herself thinking of how similar she looked to  _her_. Same hair color… same eyes… same face… God damn! Why was Yumi suddenly seeing that womaneverywhere she went! First with Maya Sagara the other day… now in magazines! Did the universe want to drive Yumi insane?

Yumi grimaced and looked away from the magazine, instead choosing to stare blankly at a piece of modern art on the wall opposite from her. After a moment, she began to wonder why she even came in for an appointment a full week before she usually did. Was it because of the new project with Daisuke Onoga and how closely his business works with the Ogasawara group? Was it because of her surprise meeting with Maya? Was it because of h _er_?

Maybe all three.

Still though, Yumi didn't really know why she had suddenly scheduled a weekend session with Doctor Kimigura at such short notice. Surely anything bothering her with the Onoga project could have waited? And the thing with Maya… well, nothing was likely to come up from that. It was a fluke. A fluke that wouldn't happen again.

Out of idle interest, Yumi pulled her phone out of her coat pocket and keyed it on. The bright screen flickered on and Yumi navigated to her messages. The latest one was an email from both Yoshino and Rei, commenting on the outing the previous day. There was an attachment on the email that Yumi hadn't noticed before, and she pressed the download toggle. It only took a few moments and, silently thanking Japan's up-to-date 4G cellular service, Yumi opened the attachment.

Yumi felt her cheeks burn at the picture that popped up on her screen.

Apparently, Yoshino  _hadn't_  deleted all the pictures she had taken yesterday! Yumi had specifically told her friend that dressing her up in skanky (what she would call skanky, anyway) outfits was all well and good… but not to take pictures for posterity!

And Yoshino had promised, too…

Yumi had half a mind to call her best friend and scream her ear off, but instead decided to wait and get Touko in on whatever revenge she was going to work out. That might be overkill but…

Yumi took another glance at the picture on her phone. She had never shown so much skin before in public, and probably never would for that matter. If this picture were to ever get out on the internet… Yumi would likely have to commit seppuku on the spot.

Overkill be damned. Yoshino was going down.

A sound from across the room jolted Yumi's attention back to the present. She looked up from her phone as the door to the inner office opened. From the inside stepped a woman dressed in a smart, ash-grey business suit, her auburn hair tied up in a ponytail. At once, Yumi recognized Doctor Emi Kimigura. She took a quiet breath and waited for the older woman to notice her. For a few seconds, the woman's bright eyes scanned the room, and then landed on Yumi. Smiling widely, she walked up to Yumi's couch and stood straight, her arms held behind her back passively. "Good morning, Fukuzawa-san." She said, her well-modulated voice was gentle and welcoming. "Are you ready to begin?"

"Yes..." Yumi sighed and, powering off her phone completely, she followed the doctor into her office, giving a friendly nod to the pretty receptionist as she passed her desk. The Doctor stepped to the side as she approached the doorway, giving Yumi a clear gesture to enter before her.

"I'll be just a moment. I need talk to Makiko-san." She said. "Just sit anywhere you like." Yumi nodded slowly and walked into the room. As she crossed the threshold, she realized that Makiko must be the receptionist's first name. Embarrassingly enough, she had never once gotten to learn the attractive younger woman's name.

Maybe she deserved to be a screw up with romance forever.

The inner office was much the same as the waiting room. Shades of off-white and gray, various pieces of artwork, ranging from classic pieces to the more modern styles Yumi had grazed over when she attended art school. At the far end of the office was Doctor Kimigura's large desk. There was a desktop computer in the middle of the desk, with papers stacked neatly on either side of the machine. On one side there was a large bookshelf laden with an assortment of books, ranging from medical textbooks to different collections of artwork. Yumi assumed the art books were filled with Kimigura's favorites, but she never followed up her assumption. She had always meant to but… she had never gotten around to it.

Across from the bookshelf, on the other side of the office, was a large fish tank. Yumi walked over to the tank and leaned forward to get a closer look. Inside were various species of freshwater fish. They lazily swam around the plants floating in the clear water, whereas one or two of them seemed to take an interest in Yumi as she pressed her finger up against the glass.

"Hey guys." She said quietly as a small, orange fish followed her finger on its side of the tank. "You doing alright?" She idly wondered if the doctor ever got bored and talked to her fish when she was alone in her office. Maybe she had psychoanalyzed each and every one of them at one time or another. Smirking to herself, Yumi decided that if she had a pet, that's what she would likely do.

The door opened once again, prying her attention away from the fish tank and towards the returning doctor. The older woman cast a speculative glance over the scene before her as she strode over to her desk. "You're not going to eat my fish, are you, Fuzuzawa-san?" She asked, placing a folder on her desk and turning fully back to Yumi.

"No, no. But I was thinking about it." Yumi remarked, hiding a laugh behind her hand. "I saw a great recipe for freshwater fish on TV the other day." The older woman raised an eyebrow at Yumi and crossed her arms over her chest.

"I forbid you to eat my pets." Her eyebrow arched high. "I don't have patient-eating-my-own-fish insurance. If such an event were to occur, I would have to ask you to pay for replacements." She smirked as she joined Yumi at the fish tank. "And I do not think you would like to do that. Some of these are  _quite_  expensive. Imports and all…"

Yumi took a step back and shrugged. "I never could understand the fascination with expensive, exotic pets."

"It's a taste thing, I suppose." The doctor returned, facing Yumi as she walked away from the tank. "I like fish. But I don't go overboard with them. At least I am not like those people that choose to dress up their dogs or cats in bright pink coats and shoes.  _I_  don't even have the temperament to figure out why people do that." Yumi laughed and nodded at that. That was why she liked Doctor Emi Kimigura. She was smart, collected, and always spoke her mind. She never failed to get Yumi to open up with her own thoughts in the process. Maybe, she thought as she sat down on a couch beside the Doctor's usual chair, that was the entire point of Emi Kimigura's style of treatment.

A little odd, from what she knew about psychiatrists. But at least in Yumi's case, it was effective.

The doctor took another moment to linger beside her fish tank, watching Yumi as she made herself comfortable on the couch, and then took a seat in her chair next to Yumi. "So, how are you recently?" She asked.

Smiling at the cliché start to the session, Yumi shrugged. "Alright, I guess." Which, of course, was stretching the truth. If she was really 'alright', she wouldn't have scheduled an early session. Emi knew this, of course, but knew enough to not press for information. "I just… have some things I'd like to talk about." There, thought Yumi, that was simple enough. Right?

"Alright." The Doctor said. She shifted her position so that one leg was crossed over the other. "What would you like to talk about, Yumi-san?"

"Mmm." Yumi made a noise, as if thinking about where to start. "I guess, I want to talk about the new project Yuuki and I landed."

"Oh?" Emi's eyebrows lifted, her eyes widened slightly. "A new work contract?"

In spite of herself, Yumi smiled. "Yea, Yuuki used his incredible charisma to land a contract with Daisuke Onoga, of the Onoga Financial Organization." Yumi stopped and watched the Doctor for a reaction of some kind. When there wasn't any, she continued. "Anyway, it would be all well and good… if it wasn't for the connections Onoga-san has."

"And what connections might those be?" Came the question.

"Uh…" Yumi wrung her hands together uncomfortably, a gesture that was not unnoticed by Emi. "The Onoga Financial Organization works with the… Ogasawara group."

"Ahh." The Doctor drawled, a hint of a smile playing about her lips. "I see now." She discreetly shifted her legs again, this time the left dangled lazily over the right. "And I would hazard a guess as to say that Yuuki-kun didn't say anything until last minute?" Yumi laughed at that. The woman was too smart; much like Touko was most days. In fact, Yumi had on more than one occasion made comparisons between Emi Kimigura and Touko. Their intuition was the same, anyway.

"I didn't find out until we were there meeting Dasike Onoga-san in person."

"That must have been fun."

"Oh yea." Yumi said with a snort. "I was mad for a while at Yuuki, but then I thought 'whatever'… there's no point in staying mad. It's just business, anyway."

Emi cocked her head to the side. "What is just business? Working with Onoga-san or being mad at your brother and co-worker?"

Yumi laughed again. "Both I guess." She sat forward and put her elbows on her knees. "I mean, working with Onoga-san is just business. It shouldn't matter who he deals with professionally. His company works with the Ogasawara Group. Fine. That doesn't mean I am."

"True. And so are you fine with it?"

No. Yumi wasn't fine with it. Truthfully, is she could spend the rest of her life and never have anything to do with the Ogasawara Group or its affiliates it would be a life well-spent. But, considering her contacts and past relations… it was a life she would never really have. She accepted the fact that she was essentially part of the Ogasawara family… regardless of how her relationship with its members was now. She could never get fully away from it. But that didn't mean she was fine with it. "I guess so." Yumi finally said. It wasn't an outright  _lie_ , but it was close enough. She crossed her arms over her chest and sighed. Again. "But it doesn't mean I am really happy about it. They are a client. I have to treat them with respect and be professional about it."

The therapist laughed softly. "Now you are stepping into the professional world of service and clientele. There will always be clients you don't necessarily want to work with. You just have to buckle up and deal with it as professionally as you are able."

Yumi looked up and cocked an eyebrow at the slightly older woman. "You too? Do you have clients you don't like working with?"

Emi smiled, a secret-sort-of smile, and winked. "Now, now, Yumi-san. I can't tell you about my patients, can I?"

"I guess not." Yumi acquiesced. "Anyway, the thing with Onoga-san is only part of what I wanted to get off my chest." Emi leaned back in her chair and laced her fingers together, her face taking on a somewhat contemplative look. She didn't speak, so after a few moments, Yumi continued. "I also… met someone the other day."

The doctor pursed her lips and arched an eyebrow. "Met someone?" She echoed thoughtfully. "Meaning?"

"I mean, I-" Yumi clicked her tongue in frustration and reached up to her neck, scratching it. "Well, I guess I'll start at the beginning…"

Emi Kimigura listened at Yumi explained her chance 'run-in' with Maya Sagara earlier, and the resulting message from her that very evening. The doctor stayed silent during the explanation, and nodded at certain moments. She seemed surprised when Yumi told her about replying to the message, but chose to keep any comments to herself. When Yumi stopped to gather her thoughts, Emi leaned forward, her face serious.

"And what do you think about that? Why did you choose to bring it up in here?" She asked slowly, carefully.

Yumi licked her lips. "I think… I want to get another's perspective on the situation." Suddenly, she laughed. "Then again, I don't think there  _is_  a situation. I mean, I really don't think anything will come from that. I likely will not see her again."

"No?" Emi voiced. The question was simple and quick. Yumi started at the suddenness of it.

"Uh… I don't think so?" She supplied nervously. "I mean… I don't know. Why would anything come from that?"

The Doctor cocked her head to the side. "It sounds like you want something to happen." It wasn't a question this time. Yumi gave the older woman a defeated smile.

"No idea. Touko wants me to get myself out there and make a new friend. I agree with her that it may be a good thing, but…" Yumi trailed off, waving her hand around.

"Well, I agree with Matsudaira-san." Emi said. "It would be good for you to meet new people. But the way you are talking about this woman, Sagara-san…" She shrugged. "It sounds to me like you are thinking about something more. Despite the fact that you just met and, as you say, may never see her again."

Yumi shook her head, suddenly serious. "No, I really don't think it's a good idea for anything more than a friendship." She wasn't really sure if Emi was thinking along the same lines as Yumi was in this conversation, but it wouldn't hurt to be specific. "A relationship, especially with a girl I just met… is out of the question." Emi eyed Yumi for a few long moments, and then her face relaxed somewhat.

"Well, I am happy that you recognize that. However, I am not saying a relationship is out of the question, Yumi-san." She held out her finger in front of her face, catching Yumi's attention. "In fact, it may help your recovery along the same lines as a new friendship. I just want to stress that you must be ready for something like that. If you think you are ready, then you are ready."

Staying silent for a few long moments, Yumi contemplated her next words. After taking a steady breath, she finally spoke. "But… the thing is… Maya Sagara looks  _exactly_  like… Sachiko Ogasawara.

Emi blinked once. Twice. A third time. Her lips curled up into a small smile and the leaned back in her chair again. "Ah." She simply said. After that, silence reigned again in the room.

Yumi took the Doctor's silence as cue to continue. "I was shocked at first. I mean, here I was, going about my normal day. And I run straight into Onee-sama! Of course I was shocked." Yumi wrung her hands together. "I couldn't even speak at first. I mean, you know what was going through my head? 'Why was she there?' 'What was she doing in Japan?' 'Why was she acting so normal?' It wasn't until after I found out she wasn't Onee-sama that I felt horrible because I had said some mean things to her…"

"Mean things?" Emi asked. "What things did you say to her?"

"Uh… I said something like, 'What was she doing here?', 'Go back to England'…" Yumi shrugged. "Things like that. But it's the tone I used that embarrassed me. I was really angry, thinking that she was Onee-sama."

"You said those things because you thought Sagara-san was Ogasawara-san?"

"Yes. She then said I must have mistaken her for someone else… then showed me her ID card." Yumi laughed bitterly. "It was a stupid mistake. Honestly… mistaking someone completely innocent for Onee-sama-"

"You keep calling her 'Onee-sama', Yumi-san." Emi noted, cutting Yumi off. "Even though you haven't seen Ogasawara-san or heard from her in almost ten years. Why is that?"

Yumi opened her mouth to answer that it was a habit, but then shut it again. Was it a habit? Shouldn't it, even as a habit, have been broken years ago? There was a time in university that she still referred to the Ogasawara heiress as 'Onee-sama'. But since then, Yumi (everyone else included) refrained from either talking about Yumi's Onee-sama, or when they did, used her full name. Even Yumi used her name since then. The first time she said the title 'Onee-sama' in a very long time was just the other day when she met Maya Sagara.

What did that mean?

Emi took Yumi's silence in stride, waiting patiently for the younger woman to answer. After a few long minutes, Yumi sucked in a breath and did the best she could. "I think…" She said slowly. "It's because I still think of her as my grande soeur. No matter what happened, no matter how angry I may be, I still think of her as my 'Onee-sama'." She pursed her lips and looked up at the Doctor, who had her eyes leveled back at Yumi's. "But that doesn't mean I am over anything." She said decidedly.

Emi nodded. "I understand, Yumi-san." She shifted her legs again. "Then, if I may, do you think the fact that Sagara-san's physical similarity to Ogasawara-san have anything to do with your apprehension to starting a friendship with her?"

"Maybe." Yumi finally said after a long pause. "I know they are two different people. Their personalities are pretty different, from what little time I spent with Maya-san. But the fact that they look alike…" She trailed off, a suddenly embarrassing thought occurring to her. "Um… do you think it's weird for me to want to be friends with her?"

"Not at all, Yumi-san." Emi said with a smile. "Sure they look similar. But as you said; they are two different people. That fact remains true."

"Right." Yumi swallowed, another uncomfortable feeling creeping into the back of her head. She looked just like Sachiko Ogasawara… but she wasn't her. A friendship was one thing. It was safe. It was normal. "Two completely different people."

Emi and Yumi looked at each other for a few long moments, neither woman saying anything. What was there to say? So much had been said already, both in this particular session and in the five years they had known each other. Yumi had told the Doctor so many things about herself, she had the feeling that, aside from Touko, Emi knew about her more than any other person. So really, what else could she say?

"Yumi-san." Emi said, uncrossing her legs and sitting up straighter.

"Hmm?" Yumi blinked and stiffened, matching the Doctor's posture.

"How long has it been since you have written in your diary?"

The question made Yumi's stomach churn. "Why?" The words came out before she could even stop herself.

"I was curious." Emi said, her tone backing up her claim. "I think that, maybe, if you look back through it, you may come to some sort of realization about your feelings toward Ogasawara-san and… maybe… your idea of a friendship with Sagara-san."

"What sort of realization?" Yumi couldn't keep the icy tone out of her voice. Emi knew what was written in her diary. She knew exactly what she was asking of Yumi. The question was, why?

"That is entirely up to you." Emi said with a light shrug. Yumi couldn't help but notice how cryptic the advice was, but chose to overlook it. She simply crossed her arms over her chest, willing her annoyance to dissipate.

"I'll consider reading through it again."

Emi nodded, her smile returning. "It may help, is all I am saying."

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 2**

Yumi knew the whole point why she waved off Touko's earlier offer of picking her up from the doctor was that she could 'reflect', as Doctor Kimigura put it, on her session. That, and so Touko could actually spend time with someone other than Yumi for a change. But, as she sat in the bus, staring out of the window at the passing pedestrians, cars, and light posts pass her by, she was acutely aware that she was not reflecting at all. In fact, barely anything that was talked about barely an hour earlier registered to her. The contract with Onoga… meeting with Maya Sagara… all of that was shoved into the back of her brain as the most pressing thought reared its ugly head.

Her diary. And the fact that Doctor Emi Kimigura wanted Yumi to dig it out and read it again. She knew exactly where it was, of course. Finding it was not a problem. The problem was the book itself. The book, and its contents. Yumi had long ago buried that book in her closet, fully intending to leave it in there, forgotten, until she moved out. When she did, she may have even thought about leaving it there. She didn't want it to follow her around like some kind of reminder from her past. That's what it  _was_ , but still...

Yumi turned her head around, casting her eyes around the bus. It wasn't very crowded, but there were still people standing instead of sitting. A few older people, both men and women, and some assorted younger students. Two girls, Yumi noticed, were wearing winter uniforms from a local school. She didn't really recognize the design, but from the ages of the girls, she Yumi guessed they were likely in high school.

She watched the pair of girls lean in close together. One of them, the older one from the looks of her, whispered something into the other's ear, and the other, the younger girl, laughed, one hand covering her mouth while the other hand grasped her friend's elbow.

Yumi pressed her lips together tightly and turned away, looking back out of her window. Had she been like that when she was in school? Had she been… so happy looking?

" _Onee-sama!"_

Yumi started and her eyes flashed back towards the couple, her heart suddenly pounding painfully in her chest. The girls were still chatting quietly together as though nothing was different. Suddenly, the younger one stepped back and laughed, playfully hitting the other's arm.

"Oda-san!" She cried as she laughed. The older girl, apparently named Oda-san, returned the younger one's playfulness with a soft shove in return. Yumi watched as the pair finished laughing and pressed close together again, continuing their conversation.

After a few long moments, Yuki clicked her tongue and glared out of the window beside her. "Tch- Yea… right." She hissed to herself.

Maybe once she was happy like that… but not anymore.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 3**

Yumi opened her front door and shut it roughly behind her, ignoring the loud 'bang' of wood on wood. She slid off her coat and dropped her purse unceremoniously beside her shoes, which she kicked off without too much effort.

Not really caring about tidying up the dirt and soot she brought into the entryway, Yumi made her way down the hall and into her bedroom, her eyes immediately falling towards her closet door. Her closet was fairly large; just short of being a walk-in. It was generally where she put her larger articles of clothing: coats, suits, dresses (the few she owned), and some old boxed of things she wanted close at hand. The rest, she had put into storage a couple years ago, right after moving in.

Opening the door and flicking on the light, Yumi waited until her eyes adjusted to the incandescent light bulb dangling from the ceiling. It didn't take long, and when she could properly see into the closet, she knelt down and began to riffle through the boxes on the floor. A few boxes of shirts, some old sweaters and sweatpants, a larger box of bed linens, all Yumi pushed aside as she went deeper and deeper towards the back of the closet.

Soon, she found what she had been looking for.

"Found you, you little bastard." She breathed and clasped the small box. She wiggled her way back out of the closet, and stood up in the more spacious area of her bedroom. Taking a moment to brush her trousers and arms free of dust, she walked over to her bed and sat down. "It's been a while, huh?" She said, holding the box gently in her hands. The box, wooden and light brown, was small; only about the size of a textbook. Yumi knew it didn't really hold much inside, but she also knew it didn't have to hold a lot to be important.

Taking a steady breath, she opened the box and looked down at the contents. Inside were only a number of photographs, some scraps of paper, and a small, leather-bound book. Yumi worked moisture into her mouth and picked up one of the pictures.

In the picture was a girl. The girl, maybe eighteen or nineteen, was smiling at the camera. Her long, dark hair cascaded down behind her head, giving the impression that she was older and more mature than she actually was. Her eyes, dark and intense, shone with an intelligence that matched her face.

Yumi pressed her lips tightly together and picked up another picture. This one, the same girl was depicted together with another girl; a younger-looking Yumi. They pair were pressed tightly together in order for the picture to come out well. Yumi, her face flushed pink, was smiling brightly. Her smile was matched equally by the other girl.

Shaking her head, Yumi replaced the picture and picked up one more. As she found one and turned it over to look at it, she felt her fingers freeze and her chest pound. On the picture was a scene she would never forget. A scene that, to this day, filled her most beloved dreams and haunted her most horrible nightmares. Yumi was in the picture. She stood straight, her face lowered slightly in embarrassment. She was standing before the same older girl that was in the other pictures. The older girl had her hands wrapped skillfully around Yumi's old Lillian Academy necktie, and was straightening it. The two girls were in front of the statue of Maria. Sun brightly light up the trees in the background, giving the overall impression that the picture was taken at the perfect time, in the perfect place. To all intents and purposes, it was. This had been Yumi's favorite picture for almost three whole years.

Until the day she graduated Lillian. Until the worst day of her life.

"Onee-sama..." Yumi heard herself whisper. Slowly, she reached her hand out and pressed her index and middle finger to the older girl's face. After a moment, she blinked back the tears that were threatening to form and dropped the picture back into the box. Looking at old pictures wasn't going to help her. That wasn't why she dug out her memories.

Willing her hand to stay steady, she picked up the book from the box and gently tossed the box to the other side of the bed, where she couldn't look at it. She turned her attention back to the book and clasped it tightly in her hands, remembering the feeling of the soft leather. She hadn't held the book in at least two years, but now that it was there in her hands, it felt like only yesterday that she last wrote in it.

Why was she doing this? Would looking through it really help at all? Why now? Why not next year? Or never? What was Doctor Kimigura's goal in having Yumi go through her most negative and destructive thoughts?

Suppressing a sudden shiver that crept up her spine, she opened the book to a random page. Of course, her words were still there. Somehow, she was hoping the ink would have disappeared in the past couple years of not being read. "Damn" She sighed. Now she would have to read it. She flicked through a few pages, recalling the methodology in which Doctor Kimigura had her write in. Everything should still be in chronological order from her graduation to the most recent entry. So all she had to do was start at beginning and see how far she could get.

Yumi flipped to the first page of the book and took a deep breath. Shifting her position on her bed to a more comfortable one, she licked her lips and began to hear her own voice narrate as she read.

0 - 0 – 0

**Part 4**

**_From the diary of Yumi Fukuzawa: Entry 1_ **

For many people, graduation day is the day you remember for the rest of your life. You graduate from your childhood and take the first step into being an adult. You progress forward, with your friends and family, into what you hope will be the next great adventure of your life. It is a great day that is filled with many laughs, happiness, as well as tears. Laughs with your friends. Happiness at the accomplishment you made that day. Tears because you know you may never see some of your friends again.

My graduation day from childhood into adulthood was filled with tears. But these weren't the happy tears of knowing you are growing up. These weren't even the tears of parting with your friends you spend our high school career with. These were tears that were shed because the love of my life tore my heart out that day.

The worst part wasn't even that. It might have been fine if she had ripped my heart out and then still wanted to be friends. Or even see each other anymore. I mean, we were soeurs after all. I could live with any decision she made, just so long as she was in my life. If she wanted to break up, that's fine. I still wanted to be her friend. Her sister.

But no. It wasn't enough just to be my sister I guess.

Anyway, I'm just bitter. Let's continue.

That morning was strangely not all that dissimilar to the previous years' graduation day. I woke with my eyes feeling much better than they had the previous night (which I had spent crying, much the same as last year). I knew that, even though today I would be graduating, it didn't mean farewell. It was just another step to take in life. Much like the word 'Gokigenyou' meant 'Hello' as well as 'Goodbye'. Today wasn't a goodbye. That had been my main consoling factor before finally acquiescing to sleep behind my swollen eyelids.

Sleep wasn't really as restful as I would have liked either. I slept uninterrupted, for what it's worth... but my dreams were full of the reminder that my friends, my petite soeur and I were going our separate ways (for the most part). When I finally did wake up, earlier than usual of course, there was much work to do to make herself presentable as the graduating ex-Rosa Chinensis.

"Honestly, Yumi... is this a re-run from last year, or is it just me?"

I turned from my starting contest with the bathroom mirror (I lost... )to find Yuuki leaning against the door jam, a sardonic smile plastered on his dumb, baka-face. I knew why he was there, though, so I couldn't find it in me to snap back at him. He knew me all too well. "It seems so, huh?" I smiled and turned back to the girl in the mirror. Her brown eyes stared back and she tried hard to force a smile out. "It's really for different reasons though."

That much was true. Onee-sama wasn't really the reason I was upset. In fact, next semester she and I would be back in the same school! That was exciting! The depressing part was now I would be separated, even just a little, from Touko, Yoshino and Shimako. That was the main reason I was sad.

Yuuki nodded towards me and took a step into the bathroom. I glanced over the girl's shoulder in the mirror and gave my brother a once-over. His brown hair was lightly brushed and, besides the small cowlick in the back of his head, he was all but ready for his own graduation. Being a boy must be so easy. Did you know they don't even have to sit down to pee? Lucky.

For a few long moments, neither of us spoke. There was no real need to. He must have known why I was still nervous. And his... well... nothing needed to be said. "Will Sachiko-san be there today?" Yuuki said, breaking the silence.

"Yea..." I said, nodding, albeit reluctantly. "We pulled some strings and were able to get both Rei-sama and Onee-sama in to watch the ceremony itself. But, she said something about having to go to a meeting with the heads of the Ogasawara Group this morning. She will make it there as soon as she is able. So it's likely that only Rei is actually coming to the ceremony. But then everyone is going to go out to celebrate afterward."

"Will Touko-san and the others be allowed to? I thought the underclassmen had a curfew? And since when do you drink?" Yuuki said, snickering slightly. I scoffed and tugged at my hair with my fingers.

"We aren't celebrating _that_  way, stupid." I said, throwing him a glare. "We're just going out to a cafe or something." Yuuki nodded in understanding, though he still had a dumb-looking smirk on his face. After another moment, it occurred to me. I whirled around and stood up, my finger pointed directly at Yuuki's nose. "And it's not Sachiko-san. It's Sachiko- _sama_! If you think I'm going to let it slide again this time, You've got another thing coming!"

Yuuki shrugged, but at least had the grace to look somewhat apologetic. "Alright, alright. Sorry! Make sure to greet Sachiko- _sama_ for me. Now move; I'm taking over." He said, gesturing me out of the door with his hand. "You pulled this crap last year and if I have to count down from a minute again, I will!"

"Ehhhh?" I groaned, feeling my face fall. Indeed, as he said, this whole thing seemed strangely similar to the previous year. "But I haven't even done my ribbons yet!"

Yuuki looked as though he was inclined to argue the point, but then, surprisingly, relented. He took a step forward and placed a hand on my shoulder. "Alright. I was only joking. I have to go anyway... some council stuff." He shrugged nonchalantly. "At least, my last day of council stuff. Good luck today, Yumi. Just smile, alright?"

I returned my brother's smile and gave him a wave as he left the bathroom.

That's right, I thought as I looked back in the bathroom mirror. The girl was still there, looking right back at me. Today was a happy day. It wasn't goodbye. I should just smile.

It's what Onee-sama would do.

I left the house on time (even with my mother's repeat of the Shinto flint and steel fire purification ceremony from last year), and arrived at the front gates of Lillian in time for the beginning of classes. I barely had time to greet Yoshino and Shimako before we were sat down in our classes and reminded the entire process of graduation. First, we would be presented with the graduation flowers in our classrooms by the second years. With a smile, I remembered how lucky I had been to be able to pin a flower on my Onee-sama the previous year. I wondered if Touko would be able to do the same for me this year.

The flower-pinning ceremony came and went. I didn't see Touko, but a second year named Kaiko Masuto pinned a flower on my chest. I felt bad that I didn't know her, but I was happy when she said "Congratulations on your graduation, Rosa Chinensis." Somehow, hearing it from someone else made it seem more real for me. I don't really know why.

After that, we proceeded to the gymnasium and, after a farewell speech from next years' Roses, we would receive our diplomas. I remember speculating with Yoshino and Shimako before the ceremony about how Nana, Noriko and Touko would structure their speech. It would undoubtedly be more impressive than ours had been the previous year… and assuming another bee didn't have its way with them, the trio should be able to pull off quite the farewell speech.

The speech was delivered, and much to my embarrassment (with equal parts pride), Touko delivered a devastatingly incredible speech accompanied by Noriko and Nana. I actually cried when Touko delivered the final line. It was something about wherever one goes, always remember that one has a family at Lillian. I don't really remember. It was a cliché and sort of campy line. But, the fact that  _my own_  petite soeur delivered it with such intensity and clarity... Well, I remember crying a lot at that point.

After that, I don't really remember the ceremony itself. Not that it wasn't moving or a happy moment. But because of what happened after… it was just kind of pushed out of my active memory. Yoshino and Shimako remember the ceremony. So, if I ever get nostalgic, I can just ask them to fill in the gaps. That's enough for me.

Rei had made it to attend the diploma awarding ceremony, but Onee-sama didn't. She had told me the previous night that she had a meeting with the heads of her family's company, and that she would be able to come, she just didn't know when. I believed her, and waited for her at the front door of the Rose Mansion. The others were all chatting with friends, classmates, saying goodbyes, and finishing what they all needed to finish. All I could think of was meeting Onee-sama.

What a damn fool, I was. I say that now, but at the time, I had no idea. Neither did Onee-sama, for that matter… but that doesn't make it any better. I am still mad at myself for being stupid and naive. I just needed to write that out. Damn.

I must have waited for a good half an hour or so. Maybe an hour. I wasn't really paying attention. When I did finally look up and see her, Sachiko Ogasawara, approaching me, my heart fluttered a little in my chest. I can still remember that final feeling of utter relief and happiness. It will probably be a feeling I remember for the rest of my life. A feeling I never want to forget.

That's the truth. Even now, years after she broke my heart. I still love that feeling of utter happiness she gave me.

"Onee-sama!" I called out, waving my hand. "I graduated!"

The smile she gave me, the forced, sad smile, made me falter. I had seen that look on her face before, but at the time, I couldn't really remember where or when. It only made the light, fluttery feeling in my chest cease. She took long, steady steps towards me and, after a few quiet moments, she stopped in front of me.

"Onee-sama?" I asked slowly, not quite sure how to take the tense atmosphere that now surrounded us. It wasn't quite the meeting I had envisioned earlier. She was supposed to be happy, right? I was supposed to be happy. "I… graduated." I tried again, a little less enthusiastic than before.

This time, Onee-sama nodded, her sad smile still on her lips. "En." She said softly. "I know. Congratulations, Yumi. I am very proud of you." In all seriousness, she did sound sincere. But, even with how naïve I was… I knew something was wrong. I just didn't have the courage to ask. Instead, all I could do was stand there, fidgeting under my grande soeur's sad, apologetic gaze. Eventually, the silence became too stifling, because she took a long, slow breath. I took one as well, preparing for… what? I didn't know. "Yumi…" She began.

"Don't say it." I heard myself say. Don't say it? Don't say what? What was she even going to say?

"I have to, Yumi." Onee-sama said, her tone going from sad to firm. "I…" She faltered, pressing her lips tightly together. "I am leaving Japan." Even seeing her face, even knowing she would tell her bad news, it still didn't prepare me for hearing those words from her. It was too outlandish, the thought of her leaving. I must have heard her incorrectly.

"Leaving…?" I asked, my voice sounding completely clueless. "Leaving where?"

"Japan. I am leaving Japan, Yumi." Onee-sama repeated, her face as pained as her voice. "I am going to England next week."

"Why?" I heard myself ask. It was the only think my mind could come up with at the time. It was all too sudden.

"The current head of the Ogasawara Group in the UK passed away a few days ago." She said. "The executives in Japan called a meeting today to decide whom would go and take over. I… was chosen." Out of all the things running through my head… Why you? You are a freshman in Lillian University; not even done with school yet. You have a family here. Why not someone else? Someone more experienced? Someone who doesn't have ties here? What about your school? What about your mother and father? What... what about me?

None of them came out of my mouth. The only thing that did was-

"I see."

Silence fell on us again. Neither of us knew what to say. Should we say goodbye? Should we try and fight it? Can we? Was the decision final? Did Sachiko even try and decline? Why us? Why was this happening to us? Why are you leaving me? Don't you love me? Can I go with you? Don't leave me alone! I don't want you to leave! Don't go!

Through all the thoughts in my head, I distantly felt a single tear slide down my cheek. I would have reached up to wipe it away, but Sachiko beat me to it. She walked up to me and, gently pressed her finger to my cheek, catching the tear before it fell onto my graduation robe. I barely noticed as she took her hand from my face and began to fix the tie on my robe. It was all so familiar, I couldn't even stop the laugh that slipped out.

"How long." I asked, my voice all but trembling.

"I don't know, Yumi. I was chosen as a long-term head of the United Kingdom Group." That was it. That was how it was. That was how they decided things. No arranged marriage. Oh no… nothing like that. Instead, something even worse. With this, Sachiko and I would be on opposite sides of the planet. How could we still be together like this? Thinking back on it now… the answer was obvious. I just refused to see it.

"So… what happens now?" I asked her, trying hard to avoid her dark blue eyes.

"I-" Her lips trembled, giving pause to her voice. "It means this is goodbye, Yumi."

"Goodbye…?" I echoed her, trying to word out. It tasted horrible on my tongue. "Why does it have to be goodbye?" Honestly, I am surprised I was still talking. Maybe it was the shock of it that kept me going.

"Yumi, we cannot keep this relationship being so far apart from each other." Onee-sama said. It was painful to hear. I remember another tear sliding down my face. This time, she didn't reach out and wipe it away.

"Why not?" I asked quietly.

Sachiko took a step back, just out of arms reach from me. "Yumi, I-" Her voice tripped, a small sob escaped her lips. "I just can't. It would be too difficult. For both of us. What we have… I just can't accept being away from you. I just couldn't stand it. So, this is goodbye."

I blinked, more tears spilling from the corners of my eyes. She didn't make any sense to me. She couldn't accept being away from me? So she was leaving? What did that mean? Did that mean she still loved me? Did that mean she was being forced? Just what was happening? "I can't go with you?" My voice was quivering. Onee-sama shook her head, a tear finally sliding down her own cheek.

"No." She simply said.

"I see." I said again, my tone hollow. Was this really happening? Why? Was God really this cruel? What did I do to deserve this? Could I do anything at all?

"Goodbye, Yumi."

I looked up in time to see Onee-sama turn around. "W-wait." I managed to call out. She stopped, turning her face back towards me. Even though my vision was blurred by the tears that were then unabashedly falling, I could still make out her sad, apologetic face. Her dark blue eyes, shining with tears. Her long, black hair, blowing slightly in the warm breeze. "Onee-sama-" I stammered. "I love you... don't go."

She stared back at me for a long moment. She made a movement as if to turn around and return to me, but then she simple bowed her head. "Gokigenyou." She said and, not looking back, she ran towards the entrance to the school.

For a long time, I stared at her retreating figure, even after she disappeared. For a long time, I stood there, barely taking enough breaths to keep myself from collapsing. For a long time, I cried, no longer feeling the tickle of tears as they fell down my cheeks, staining my graduation robe. After a while, I was kneeling on the ground, sobbing aloud. I could hear myself crying, but I could do nothing to stop it. It just came out. My sobs mixed with painful words to form a language I, and I am fairly certain no one on this Earth, could not hope to understand. All of it happened too quickly. Everything was said too fast. But one thing was certain. Sachiko was gone. Onee-sama was gone. It was over. I couldn't do anything, so I knelt there, crying in front of the Rose Mansion.

"Onee-sama!" I heard a voice from far off, but didn't really recognize it. It was odd, I thought at the time. Onee-sama was gone, wasn't she? Why would Onee-sama come back when she just left? What good would that do?

"Onee-sama!" I heard it again, closer this time. Yet again, I remembered that Onee-sama just left. Leave me alone. Onee-sama was gone. There was no Onee-sama here.

Finally I felt a pair of hands on my shoulders. "Onee-sama!" I heard the call again and, this time, I looked up weakly. I blinked away some of the blurriness to see Touko kneeling down in front of me. Oh, that's who was calling 'Onee-sama'. I was her Onee-sama, wasn't I? That made sense.

Silly me.

"Onee-sama…" Touko's voice was quiet. Her eyes, usually a sharp and intelligent, were rounded and soft. Her lips were pulled down in a worried frown. Somewhere in my mind, I thought to myself that this was a very different Touko than the Touko I knew. She brought her hand up and wiped her thumb across my cheek, trying but failing at cleaning up the mess that was most likely my face.

"Touko-" I hiccupped, biting back another sob. "She's gone." I didn't say who. She probably knew anyway.

My petite soeur looked at me for a long time, and then nodded. "She just told me a few minutes ago." She said, her lips pulled down into a deeper frown. "She just left the school. Do you want to go after her?"

Hearing her say it just made it worse. She was gone. She left. It hurt to think about and sent another sob from my lips. Go after her? Why? She wanted to leave, didn't she? It's not like she wanted me to follow her, right? This wasn't a game of cat and mouse. She was really leaving.

"She's gone…" I sobbed, lowering my head. "Gone. Gone. Gone. Gone." The word repeated itself in my head and in my ears, as if it were the only thing that mattered. In a way, it was. My felt Touko's arms wrap around my back and her face press on the top of my head. Past my sobs, I heard her voice, soft and quiet.

"Onee-sama… I want you to count from one to one hundred." She said. "Until you do, you cannot move from this spot."

If I had been thinking clearly, I would have laughed at the irony of the situation. Touko had just told me to do the exact same thing I told her the previous year, when she had been upset. After I had first offered my rosary to her and asked her to by my petite soeur, she had taken it as a sign of pity, thinking I knew about her family issues. Later, she had vocally lashed out at me, and I bade her to count from one to one hundred. Until she did, she couldn't move. It was a good way to calm oneself down.

And here she was, one year later, telling me to do the same thing. It would have been funny, if I wasn't half-delirious with rejection.

"One." I whispered.

One year of being together as lovers. That's what Onee-sama was throwing away. For no other known reason than obeying what her family-run company told her to do.

"Two."

The two of us were always together. Ever since becoming soeurs, I felt as though we were made for each other.

"Three…"

Almost three entire years of knowing each other. I thought I knew her more than anybody else. Except maybe Youko, her grande soeur. I had thought she knew me best, as well. If so, she must have known how I would take this. So why did she do this?

"Four. Five. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine…" I whispered, my voice all but trembling. Each time, my counting growing louder as my grief came bubbling up to the surface. Each number reminded me of her. Each number reminded me that it was indeed over. Each number made it worse.

"Ten." "Ten."

This time, I felt Touko's hands grip the back of my shirt as I said the next number. Her voice mixed with mine as I counted. She brought her face down and pressed her cheek up against my own. I could barely register the slight warmth and wetness against my face, either from my own tears or hers.

"Eleven." "Eleven."

As I counted, I listened to the sound of her voice with mine. She counted with me, not missing a single number as the counting went higher and higher. She cried beside me, her hands wrapped tightly around my shoulders and back, sharing my sadness. I could feel her shoulders shake slightly with each number, each breath. Eventually, my hands found their way up and wrapped themselves around her back. I pulled her in closer and cried into her shoulder.

"Fifty." "Fifty."

Higher we counted. More we cried. I have no idea how much time passed while we knelt there in front of the Rose Mansion. I have no idea if anyone saw us. I have no idea if she or I said anything besides numbers. It didn't matter. All that mattered was her voice in my ear and her arms wrapped around me.

"Ninety..." "Ninety..."

We were almost there. We were almost finished. I knew when we reached one hundred, we would let go of each other and then both stop crying. But even then, I knew it wouldn't really end. I now knew that, even though the counting would end, Touko would still be there. She would always be there for me. She would be there to comfort me in sadness. Congratulate me in success. Be there when I needed her, as I knew she would be.

And, in turn, I wanted to be there with her. I wanted to do what my Onee-sama did not. I wanted to be there for her like she was there for me. This wasn't a goodbye. There was no goodbye between us. Because Touko was my soeur. Because she was my sister.

"One-hundred." "One-hundred."

Happy graduation, Yumi.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 5**

Yumi shut the book silently and tossed it to the side of her bed. She lay there for a long time, unmoving, and stared at her ceiling. She watched as the ambient light from outside her window dimmed from bright yellow, to orange, and finally to the deep purple and red of twilight. She listened as her wall-clock ticked on second after second, minute after minute. She didn't move, didn't go to sleep. She just lay on her bed, thinking about what she had herself written in the past.

After what seemed like hours (perhaps it actually had been hours), Yumi felt her stomach grumble painfully. Realizing that she had skipped lunch, she pushed herself up from her bed and walked out of her darkened room. She walked down the hall and stepped into kitchen. Opening the fridge out of habit, she peered around to see what she had available to eat.

Eggs... ham... turkey... tomatoes... some leftover mashed potato and brisket from two nights ago. None of it seemed really all that appetizing at the moment.

Shutting the fridge quietly, she stepped over to the hanging cupboards beside the fridge and took a look inside. There were a number of perishable and nonperishable foods inside, mostly canned, and it took Yumi only a moment to decide on a container of instant noodles.

There. Quick, easy, and unhealthy. Perfect.

Yumi began to boil some water in the kettle and took a seat at the kitchen island to wait for it to finish. It didn't take very long, and as soon as the electronic kettle clicked off, Yumi snatched it off its cradle and poured a generous amount into the noodles' paper container. Not even waiting for the boiling water to properly cook her dinner, she took the noodles and walked out of the kitchen.

Her first destination was the living room. She sat down on the couch and placed the container of noodles in front of her. She sat back and eyed the unpowered television for a few long moments, not quite decided if she should actually watch anything.

Cartoons? No.

Drama? No thanks.

Horror? Gah… who was she, Yoshino?

Forgoing the choice of watching TV, Yumi took her noodles in hand again and walked back out of the living room, instead returning to her bedroom. She entered the dark room and flicked on the light with her free hand. Actively avoiding looking at the book and box of pictures on the far side of her bed, yumi chose instead to sit on the opposite side of the bed, closer to her nightstand and her closet. There she sat for a while, just holding her food and not quite brining herself to start eating.

Just what the hell, thought Yumi as she stared into the noodles in her hand, was the whole goddamn point of that?

The sudden buzz from her phone almost made Yumi drop the container of noodles. She shot her eyes over to her nightstand and leaned over to get a better view. From the LED screen, she could make out the name 'Touko Matsudaira' as the caller. Careful not to spill the noodles (which she still hadn't even touched), she picked up her phone and pressed the 'answer' toggle. "Hey." Her gruff, tired voice came out from her throat, surprising herself more than a little.

There was silence on the line for a few moments, and then- "Good evening Onee-sama." Touko's voice came through, as cool and controlled as ever.

"Hn. Hey Touko." Yumi replied softly.

"How are you this evening?"

Yumi pressed her lips together, holding back yet another sigh. She had been doing that a little too much recently and would probably do well to try and stop. "...Fine."

"Have you eaten?" Touko asked after a few more moments.

Yumi held up her fork in her free hand, gesturing to no one in particular that she was in the process of eating at that moment. "Uh... yea. I made some noodles." So she hadn't finished eating them yet- so sue her. She was tired.

"That is good." Her petite soeur said from her end. There was another pause, and then she cleared her throat. "How did your appointment go this morning?"

Yumi grimaced inwardly. There it was. She knew it wouldn't have taken Touko long to ask about it. Not that it was a bad thing for the woman to ask about Yumi's visits to Doctor Kimigura's office... Touko always did. And Yumi never failed to talk to her 'sister' about it, either. But the fact that Yumi had gone through her diary after made today's visit slightly more... taxing. Taxing and more difficult to talk about.

"Uh... It went fine..." Yumi said, not all that firmly. It was a half-truth at least. The appointment itself was fine, anyway.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Again, yes and no. She did, and yet she didn't. Just what  _could_  she talk about? Should she mention her talk with Emi about the Onoga contract? The situation, if there was a situation at all, with Maya Sagara? Or...

"I..." Yumi trailed off. In truth, she really didn't know. She would gladly, willingly share anything and everything with Touko. But as of right then, with her entire afternoon spent going through her past memories and reliving her breakup with  _her..._  Yumi just wasn't sure what to share. She didn't know what to talk about. Onoga? Sagara? Neither of the two were all that important now. Nothing had really started with them yet, either.

She just knew one thing for sure.

"I hate her, Touko." Yumi whispered into her phone. That was the most pressing thought on her mind. That was the thing she wanted to get off her chest most. She grasped the device tightly in her hand, and wisely used her other hand to push the noodles off her lap and onto her nightstand. "I hate her so much." She didn't know if Touko understood who Yumi was talking about. But, from her silence as Yumi sucked in a deep breath, she probably had a good idea. "I hate her- I hate her for what she did to me! I hate her for leaving me! I hate her for never contacting me! I hate her for- for-" She stuttered, too angry to think of anything to add.

"Onee-sama..." Touko started softly.

"I hate her, Touko!" Yumi yelled into the phone, her tone rising in pitch. She knew that Touko had done nothing to deserve being yelled at, and that none of this was her fault, but now that she started, she couldn't easily stop. "I fucking hate her! I hate her so Goddamn much! I hope she is happy! Wherever she is, I hope she is happy knowing she made my life a living Hell!" She felt her tone fade as she said the last thought that came into her head. "I hate her… for loving me. I… wish that she never made me her soeur."

"Onee-sama, please-" Touko said, her tone becoming worried. "You don't mean that."

"I do! I wish she and I never met!" As Yumi screamed into the phone, she suddenly felt a wave of dizziness wash over her. "I-" She started to speak again, but stopped, swallowing against a suddenly dry throat. She really hated her. She left Yumi along for years. No phone calls… no emails… no nothing. The only way Yumi ever found out anything about her was from third-party information from either Touko or Kashiwagi… The Ogasawara heiress had all but abandoned Yumi and left to England. And Yumi hated her for it.

"I hate her so much, Touko…" Yumi whispered into her phone's mouthpiece.

There was silence on the line for a long time. "I know, Onee-sama." Touko finally said, quietly.

Suddenly, a sob escaped Yumi's lips. She held her hand up to her mouth, while her other hand pressed her phone tightly against her ear. She gave another sob, and felt the tears that had threatened to build up while she was reading earlier finally begin to slide down her cheeks. She cried into the phone for a long time, not saying anything. Touko remained silent on her end as well; she knew enough to give her grande soeur time to let her feelings out.

After a few long minutes of quiet sobbing into the phone, Yumi sucked in a shaky breath. She hiccupped, and wiped her cheek with the back of her hand. "Touko?" She asked.

"Yes?" Came the reply.

"I miss her so much…"

"…I know, Onee-sama."

0 – 0 – 0

_End of chapter 4_


	5. Chapter 5

**The Princess and the Sparrow**

_Interlude 1_

0 – 0 – 0

**Interlude: Touko**

Touko Matsudaira drove out of the parking lot of Emi Kimigura's office, taking one last look at Yumi Fukuzawa as she rounded a corner. Touko knew the older woman would be fine; that she didn't have to worry. But, she couldn't help it; it was in her blood to worry about Yumi. It had long ago been ingrained into her heart to care about her Onee-sama. So, as the sight of the older, brown-haired woman disappeared from view, Touko felt a small pang of unease settle in on her. She shook off the feeling and concentrated on the road in front of her.

She would see her again soon. It would be fine. Just fine.

Trying her best to console herself that her Onee-sama was a grown woman and could take care of herself, Touko glanced at her dashboard clock. It was still before eleven, plenty of time to make it to her tea/luncheon with Aya Kotomine. The two women had agreed to meet at eleven-thirty so she had a full thirty minutes and change before the arranged meeting time. But, knowing the energetic twenty-five year old the way Touko did, she was likely to be there a full half-an-hour early.

Touko smirked and gripped her steering wheel tightly, the soft leather creaking under the pressure. If she hurried, she could still make it there before her petite soeur. God forbid if she was later than her own petite soeur!

Unluckily, when Touko entered the café at ten minutes past eleven, her hoped were crushed when she was greeted by an excited, familiar wail.

"Onee-sama!"

Touko turned towards the voice just in time to catch a brown-haired blur as it came crashing into her. She deftly stepped to the side, letting her arms take most of the weight and narrowly avoiding being pushed to the ground. She shook her head as the woman in her arms squealed happily; when was the girl  _ever_  going to grow out of running hugs?

"Gokigenyou, Aya." Touko said, pushing the younger women back to both her feet and stepping back to greet her petite soeur properly. The girl righted herself and grinned happily up at Touko.

"Gokigenyou, Onee-sama!" Aya said, her eyes matching her elated expression. Her light brown hair was brushed, neatly parted down the middle and pulled into a single ponytail at the nape of her neck. Her eyes, just barely a different color than Touko's own Onee-sama, were covered by wide, thick-rimmed glasses (the girl had quite a high prescription- though she often wore contacts). Her coat had been shed and she wore a loose-necked sand-colored sweater, with a light pink blouse under it. Touko raised an eyebrow when she noticed the younger woman wore a red skirt and white leggings, but chose to overlook it simply because not two days ago she, too, wore a skirt to see Yumi. Sometimes, a girl just had to dress to impress. "Come on, I ordered for us!" She grabbed Touko by the arm and all but dragged her back to the table she had been seated at. Touko noticed that Aya had already set up her portable computer, complete with peripheral mouse. From the fact that she had already set up her kit, but not received the tea or food yet, Touko assumed Aya had not arrived more than five minutes ago. Touko set her jaw tightly as she sat down and put her bag on the seat next to her. She silently promised that she would force herself to arrive ten minutes earlier next time.

Aya sat down across from Touko and pushed her computer to the side, clearly intent on focusing on her Onee-sama rather than the computer. That was good; Touko would have to be very cross with the younger girl if she spent their entire teatime working… or even worse, playing video games like she often did.

"So, what did you order for us?" Touko asked.

Aya beamed and picked up the menu card from the table. She slid it over so Touko could read it and pointed to a couple different items on the front of the card. "I got green milk tea, some sesame cookies, and two ham and parmesan cheese sandwiches. They looked really yummy!" She enthused. Touko smiled and nodded. They seemed to be good choices, from what she could see.

"That sounds lovely. Thank you, Aya." The woman, if at all possible, grinned more widely and giggled.

"Sure, sure!" She said, putting her hand behind her head in an embarrassed gesture. "It's what I am here for!" Her eyes flicked over to her computer's screen, and then just as quickly returned to Touko. Aya's look didn't go unnoticed, and Touko leaned forward, her hands resting under her chin.

"What are you working on?" She asked evenly. Aya blinked and looked even more embarrassed.

"Aiya…" She said. 'Aiya' was a Chinese word she had picked up from her time studying the language in college. Not having an exact meaning or direct translation, the closest Touko (as well as everyone else) guessed it to mean was something along the lines of saying 'oops'. The fact that the word also sounded the same as her name was a humorous coincidence. "Sorry, Onee-sama…" She apologized, as least having the sense to look  _somewhat_  apologetic. "I was in the middle of working a new code and…" She trailed off, shrugging. She then reached over and closed the laptop. "I'll stop, I promise."

Touko nodded, satisfied. "Good. I did not come all the way here and leave Onee-sama on her own today just to watch you work."

Aya blushed and giggled again. After a moment, her eyes widened and she leaned forward. "Yumi-nee-sama?" She asked. Touko nodded. "Ah! I haven't seen Yumi-nee-sama since New Years! How is she? What is she doing? When can I see her again? I want to show her a new video game I got! We should meet for lunch sometime! Why didn't she some today? I miss her  _so_  much!" Her voice came out rushed and more than a little jumbled. Touko glared softly at the younger woman. Honestly, she  _knew_  she taught Aya better than that. The brown-haired woman blinked again and grinned lopsidedly. "Sorry, Onee-sama…" She said. She suddenly looked over Touko's shoulder and smiled. "Ah, our order is ready. I'll be right back." With that, she got up and walked over to the counter.

Touko watched her petire soeur approach the counter, grab their food and drinks, and bring it back to their table. Nodding her thanks to the younger woman as she placed a sandwich and cup of tea in front of her, she waited until Aya was seated again before speaking. "I just came here from dropping Onee-sama off at Kimigura-sensei's office." She explained.

Aya formed her lips into an 'Oh' and nodded in understanding. "I see. In that case, I feel bad about dragging you away from Yumi-nee-sama…" She sounded sincere. Touko shook her head and picked up her teacup, taking a sip and sighing appreciatively at the taste. Green tea with milk. There was likely some honey in it as well. She would have to tell Onee-sama about this later.

"I was just joking, Aya." She said, putting the cup back on the table. "You and I planned this lunch last week. Onee-sama told me she was going to see Kimigura-sensei last night. In this case, you take priority."

Aya blinked rapidly, her glasses sliding a little down the bridge of her nose with the action. She pushed them back up to her eyes. "Now that I think about it, isn't it a little too soon her her to go see Kimigura-sensei?" She asked, confused. Touko shrugged, picking up a cookie and peering at it.

"She said she had some things to talk to Kimigura-sensei about. She wouldn't tell me what."

"Oh…" Aya picked up her sandwich and daintily took a bite. She thoughtfully chewed the sandwich and, a few moments later, swallowed. "I hope she is alright."

"Mmm." Touko nodded and popped the seasame cookie into her mouth. "Anyway," She said after crunching the morsel and swallowing it. "How have you been?"

Their lunch was delicious, the conversation was lively (mostly led by Aya and her enthusiastic chattering), and Touko found herself smiling throughout most of the meeting with her petite soeur. They were both older, wiser, and busier people ever since their years in Lillian and university. But, they were still the same people that had become soeurs together. They were still the same Touko Matsudaira and Aya Kotomine. They always would be, no matter how old they became. No matter what happened to them, they would always be friends… sisters.

After their conversation and lunch had both run itself dry, Aya told Touko that she had an afternoon full of coding to catch up on. Touko understood, of course. After all, she had a busy afternoon ahead of her as well. It wasn't anything near as fun as working, of course. She had a dinner to prepare for.

As Aya left, Touko shuddered. She would have much rather spent the afternoon coding a program (she didn't even know how to…) than spend a few hours at another boring, stuffy family business dinner. The so-called 'business/family dinners' after all, always seemed to consist of people not strictly in the family and were often used to build professional relations. She knew they were important, obviously… but she just didn't see why it was necessary for her to always attend. On more than one occasion, after all, her parents and acquaintances had introduced young men to her in hopes she would take a liking to someone of prestige.

For all the good it would do them.

Touko sighed and sat back in her chair. She looked down at her wristwatch and, seeing that she still have free time until she was due home, reached into her bag. She felt around for a moment until finding her target.

Touko pulled out a small book from her bag. The book was light, clearly not having many pages, and new. It was now, after all. She had just bought the book the previous day when she visited the mall. Touko examined the cover for a moment. It was colorfully painted and had large, clear letting on the front. From the design of it, the book was obviously a children's book. The title, 'The Saddest Shoes in the World', was clearly printed on the top. Underneath was a very artistic rendition of a fat little boy, wearing a pair of bright blue sneakers. Touko eyed the picture for a few moments, the art style tickling in the back of her memory. She didn't know why, but somehow the style was reminiscent to something she had seen before. As a child, maybe. She had read lots of children's books before when she was younger, and had a good collection stored away for the future. If she even had children (unlikely), they would probably inherit the collection.

Touko tore her eyes away from the cover picture and looked down at the author of the book. At the bottom of the cover, printed just as clearly as the title at the top was-

_Written and illustrated by: Maya Sagara_

Touko opened the book and began to read. The story was cute, the pictures were very colorful and impressive. Overall, it was a very good piece of work. As she got to the end, she turned to the last page in the book and began to read the author's introduction.

_Maya Sagara was born in Kyoto, and always had an interest in art. As a child, she read many different books and loved fantasy. She loved stories about princesses, magic, and folklore. Now a writer, she liked to combine art with fantasy into her stories, hoping that other children will find it just as interesting as she did._

A good, simple introduction. One that most children would understand. Touko pursed her lips and looked at the author's picture. A fairly attractive woman of twenty-eight years, her long, black hair shone brightly as it fell down her shoulders. Her sharp, intelligent, dark blue eyes smiled back at the reader. Her smile, thin but friendly, was very approachable, but with a hint of standoffishness.

All of these features, Touko recognized at once.

Setting her jaw tightly in place, she put the book back into her back and took a few minutes to think. After what seemed to her like hours, she reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. She scrolled through her contacts and, finding who she wanted to telephone, pressed the call toggle and put the phone to her ear. After three rings, the other side picked up.

"Well, hello there, Touko." Came the calm, steady voice of Suguru Kashiwagi. "To what to I owe the honor of your rare call?" There was a hint of his old sardonic humor in his voice. Touko smiled softly and tilted her head against the phone.

"You mean it's not enough just to hear your voice, Nii-san?" She asked tartly. It  _was_  good to hear his voice, actually.

"Well, you seem to call me so rarely, sometimes I wonder." Suguru said airily. "With you calling so infrequently, I am all but completely out of the loop with how things are on your end." Touko knew what the older man meant by her end. Touko's life, Yumi's life… everyone in the old crew from high school. Yumi and Touko were practically the man's only way of knowing how everyone was doing, now that Sachiko had been gone from the group for nearly a decade.

"Sorry, Nii-san." Touko apologized, and meant it. "I'll try and do better. I just have so much on my place recently…"

"I know, Touko. I am just giving you a hard time." Suguru said jokingly. "So, what can I do for you?"

"Are you free now?" Touko asked, suddenly conscious that she may have interrupted her cousin while was her busy. It was Sunday, but knowing how much the older man did professionally and privately, it was completely likely that he was having some sort of business lunch… or something along those lines.

"I am free enough." The man said amicably. "Are you alright?" Touko cursed inwardly. She hadn't realized her tone could give anything away… but Suguru was sharp like that.

"Well…  _I_  am alright." Touko said carefully. She didn't really want to involve Suguru in this. But, the older man was better at dealing with things like this better than she was. When Yumi was concerned, that is. "It's actually about Onee-sama…"

0 – 0 – 0

**Interlude: Maya**

From out of the blissful haze of sleep, the catchy, synthesized voice of Miku Hatsune sounded from the mobile phone somewhere beside Maya Sagara's head. Upon hearing her bright, cheery ringtone she reached her hand out and sluggishly felt around for said device. Her eyes still being closed, it should have been somewhat difficult to locate her phone. But because she habitually put it in the same place (on her dresser to the left of her bed) every night, she felt out her phone easily and cracked open one sleepy eye to see who was calling.

"Oh no…" She mumbled. Out of all the people calling her, and at eight thirty in the morning, this was one person she really did  _not_  want to talk with. But, as she was well aware, if she ignored the call, he would simply call again. There was nothing for it. Clearing her throat as best as she could, she rolled over on one side and put her phone to her ear. "Hello. This is Maya Saraga."

"Ah! Good morning, Sagara-sensei!" Came the overly-friendly voice of Souichi Gonda. Maya grimaced at the voice. Not that she disliked Souichi as a person, of course. He was friendly, knowledgeable, and helpful to generally everyone. She was just firmly under the impression that no one should be so energetic in the morning.

On a Sunday.

"Good morning, Gonda-san." Maya replied, stifling a yawn. "What do- uh… to what do I owe the pleasure of your wake-up call?" She stumbled a bit with her words. Thinking first thing in the morning just wasn't her thing, after all. The slightly older man knew this, and chuckled good-naturedly.

"Did I wake you up, Sagara-sensei?"

"If I say yes, will you hang up and let me go back to sleep?"

Souichi chuckled again. "I'm afraid not." He said.

Maya groaned tiredly, if only to prove to the man that she had indeed been woken up by his call. "I was up late working last night." She explained. If she gave the impression that she had been working instead of goofing off, then perhaps she could placate him enough to leave her alone and go back to sleep.

"Oh?" The other sounded interested, or so it seemed from his tone. "Does that mean our little pep-talk on Friday had some effect on you?"

Maya exhaled; a long, slow breath out of her nose. She had been called into a 'business meeting' on Friday afternoon by Souichi Gonda for the only purpose of asking about the progress of her new book. She could understand why he wanted to have a face-to-face with her, so it hadn't really bothered her. In fact, it had been quite a long time since the release of her last book, so she could wholeheartedly understand why her publishing company was beginning to get antsy. After all, she had almost nothing to show for the last six months of downtime. In the professional world, that was almost a lifetime. But really,  _two_  separate meetings during the same week? There had been one on Tuesday, and another one on that Friday. If her publishers wanted some progress out of her, they should at least stop pressuring her so much.

"More or less." Maya sighed. It was a half-truth, anyway. After all, it hadn't been the meeting that had an effect on her. It was what had happened right before the meeting with Souichi.

"Ah. Good!" He enthused, pressing on cheerily. "Then you wouldn't be adverse to coming in today and showing me what you came up with?"

What.

"Huh?" Maya finally opened her eyes, and stared at her wall. Her bed was in the corner of the room, so from where she was laying, she could get a great view of her off-white wall just a few inches away from her face. "What did you say?"

If Souichi was humored at all by Maya's response, he kept it hidden well. "I said that if you were able to produce something," He patiently reiterated. "I would very much like it if you could come in and show me."

"Today." Maya repeated steadily. The sleepiness was all but gone from her voice. "Today is Sunday." Wait, today  _was_  Sunday! "Why are you even working today?"

She could practically hear Souichi shrug. "Sagara-sensei, I am in charge of your contract with us, as well as numerous others. I work on Sundays in order to get caught up with everyone before Monday." He sighed deeply. "It is why I am still unmarried..."

In spite of herself, Maya had to laugh at that. If it wasn't for Souichi's enthusiasm and early morning energy, she would have almost found him endearing. "I didn't know you were such a hard worker." She observed truthfully. "You had better make sure you don't overwork yourself."

"Now, now, Sagara-sensei, overworking yourself is Japanese tradition." Souichi said, his tone light and friendly. He suddenly became more serious. "But, honestly, I would like it if you could show me what you came up with. The higher-ups-"

"I know..." Maya sighed, bringing her hand up to pinch the bridge of her nose. "You told me on Friday. And on Tuesday. And the week before that. And the week before that."

"So you'll come in?"

"Alright." It wasn't as though Maya had anything better to do today, anyway. "What time should I come in?" Soiuchi was silent for a few moments. Most likely, Maya assumed, checking with any other scheduled tasks to complete today.

"How does eleven sound to you?"

"Sounds fantastic." Maya said, not able to keep the mild sarcasm out of her tone. "Though, I really should warn you... don't get your hopes up. I just started to get something on paper Friday night. It's nothing final. Barely an idea, even."

"Anything at all is better than nothing at all, Sagara-sensei." Souichi soothed. "I'll see you in a couple hours."

"Bye." Maya said and keyed off her phone. Slowly, maybe even a bit theatrically, she waved her arm around and tossed her phone away. She couldn't see where it landed (she was still staring at the wall), but from the sound it made when it landed, it likely hit the carpet safely. That was a plus, at least. A single plus in the long equation of minuses of her day. Or negatives. Or whatever. "Great." She sighed and rolled herself over, facing the rest of her bedroom.

Maya's bedroom was fairly small. It was small, but from the layout of the furniture and the spacing of the door to the window on an adjacent wall, it seemed slightly larger than it really was. In one corner was the bed; a twin size. Small, but useful enough for her. At the end of her bed and lodged in the other corner of the room was a fairly large wardrobe; larger than what should be necessary in a room this size. But, considering Maya had been brought up to have some sort of taste in clothing (compliments of her mother), the large wardrobe filled with assorted clothing was a given. On the opposite side of the room was a desk with a laptop, a swivel computer chair, a rubbish bin placed beside the desk, and a laundry basket on the other side of the desk.

Again, not a very large room, but large enough to fit everything needed comfortably enough.

Finally realizing that going back to sleep was not really an option, Maya pushed herself up and stretched her arms over her head in a comfortable yawn. After pulling herself out of bed, she padded over to her wardrobe. She opened the door and was greeted by her own reflection in the full-length mirror on the inside of the wardrobe door. Her hair was slightly mussed from sleep, her eyes seemed a bit bloodshot… most likely from the lack of complete rest she had gotten over the past two nights.

She reached up and put her hands against her cheeks, tugging at them slightly with her thumb and index fingers. She stood there for a few moments, and then sighed wistfully. Every day it seemed as though she was getting older and older. Every day it seemed as like there was something missing. Every day… she wished she knew if she was doing what she  _should_  be doing. She took another close look at her face in the mirror. There was no way she could go outside like this. Luckily, a generous application of choice make-up should be able to take care of this particular issue. She would have to take a quick shower to be able to have time to get her ready and make it to the publishing office by eleven.

Picking out on outfit before showering, casual but still acceptable to be seen as professional, only took a few moments. She decided on a light blue, long-sleeved blouse and a pair of black slacks. She picked out some undergarments as well, and lay out the articles of clothing across her bed. Nodding to herself, she made her way to the door to the main room of her apartment and opened it.

Suddenly, as the main room came into view from the doorway, Maya remembered what she had been working on almost nonstop since Friday night.

Scattered all over the apartment's main room, as well as the attached kitchen and dining room combination, was a seemingly innumerable amount of papers, used paint (still mostly in their containers), and small canvases. The paper, consisting of random scribbles and assorted written lines of text, was strewn around the couch and the coffee table. Maya had spent hour after hour since Friday sprawled on her couch, notebook in hand writing and sketching anything and everything had come to mind. When her pencil had stopped moving, she had pulled herself up to her small easel in the corner of the room and begun to paint. She didn't really know what she was painting; she simply painted anything that came to mind.

Maya hadn't actively written, drawn, or painted anything for three months. And the fact that she had just suddenly picked up and started again so suddenly hadn't got unnoticed to her. If she were to go ahead with what Souichi had said, she could agree that it was in part to the 'pep-talk' he gave her on Friday… which had consisted of mainly guilt tripping Maya about her not producing anything for the company past six months. But she was acutely aware that Souichi and his pressuring was not why she suddenly started working again.

The real reason was because of her chance meeting on Friday afternoon, right before she had her meeting. She had planned on stopping off for a few minutes and getting a coffee. After that, she would leisurely make her way to her publishing office to meet with Souichi. However, completely surprising Maya, she had instead met Yumi Fukuzawa.

Shaking her head free of any remaining cobwebs that sleep brought on, Maya turned away from the mess that was her apartment and entered the bathroom, its door right beside her bedroom door.

After a long, refreshing shower (Maya realized that it had been her first one since Friday morning), she sat herself down in front of the bathroom mirror and began to blow-dry her hair, the first step of many in making herself presentable to the outside world. From the bags under her eyes, her somewhat pale complexion brought on by lack of sleep the past two days, and the still tired look on her face, it looked like she had her work cut out for her.

Luckily, Maya thought bemusedly as she rummaged through her makeup bag on the bathroom counter for the right foundation for her skin tone, her mother was a very good teacher. As a teenager, her mother had drilled lesson after lesson into her about makeup, clothing, and taking care of oneself as a lady. The woman's motto growing up was "A woman's clothing was just as important to her as her own personal features", and while she never took everything her mother said to heart, she did agree with it to some extent. She  _was_  a lady, after all. Not only that, but her mother was one of the most beautiful and hard-working women she could ever hope to meet. That had to count for something.

As her mother's words replayed in her head, Maya suddenly had a flash from her memory. Herself, telling that very motto to Yumi Fukuzawa not two days ago. She smiled at the thought. The entire meeting with Yumi had been an embarrassing circumstance to Maya; she had stumbled into her and spilled her whole coffee all over the woman's clothes, after all. That, most assuredly, did not make for a good first impression.

However, after most of the embarrassment wore off, and Yumi's initial mistaking Maya for someone else had been sorted out (that had been odd, considering Maya had never really been mistaken for someone else before), she had found the young architect extremely approachable and easy to talk to. Maya didn't really know why, but something about Yumi made it very easy for Maya to talk to her. That didn't really happen very often, as she was generally thought of by her colleagues and old classmates as soft-spoken and fairly quiet. Nevertheless, her meeting with Yumi had brought out a friendliness in Maya that she herself hadn't noticed in quite a long time.

She had found the woman so friendly and approachable that Maya had even sent her a message later that night. She wanted to try her luck to make friends with the brown-haired woman. She was just too interesting to pass up as a one-time meeting.

It had been Yumi's approachability, and her highly expressive face, that caused Maya to start working again. All through her meeting that very afternoon after meeting the brown-haired woman, she had thought about that face. Those eyes, how they formed so many different expressions during their very short meeting. Surprise, shock, confusion, anger, frustration, shame, relief, laughter, interest… all those Yumi had shone Maya during their barely twenty-minute meeting in that small café. It had been so interesting, so  _artistic_ , that right after she got back home, she started sketching again. She didn't know what she was sketching, or why, but something about meeting Yumi Fukuzawa, and witnessing her face made Maya was to draw.

Not only draw, though. Maya also picked up a pen and started writing out words. These words didn't really make any sense; such words like  _brown_ …  _sky_ …  _cage_ …  _new_   _and old_ … These words were pretty random and couldn't easily be grouped together… but it was a start. She could work with these. As she drew and drew into the night, as she wrote and wrote all day on Saturday, as she painted and painted all evening and night until she could barely stand… all Maya could think about was brown eyes, different expression and feelings, and how they could be put down and made into art.

It was tiring… but Maya had not felt so good in months. It was fulfilling.

Inspecting herself in the mirror one last time to view the fruits of her efforts, she nodded in satisfaction. Good, she looked like a person again. Standing up and exiting the bathroom, she went into her bedroom and starting slipping on the clothes she laid out earlier. Only after getting dressed did she laugh to herself. It was so cold outside, that she would likely wear her coat anyway. So, essentially, it didn't really matter what she was wearing.

Oh well, it was the principal of the thing.  _She_ knew what clothes she was wearing.

Maya leaned over and picked up a leather folding briefcase from beside her desk. After making sure it was empty she re-entered the main room and began to pick up pieces of paper that were scattered around. She was looking for something,  _anything_  she could use to placate Souichi and, vicariously, the publishing company. They wanted results, and she had to produce them. So far, however, she didn't have anything besides random scribbles and drawings of eyes, hair, skylines and… strangely enough, a castle. A very badly drawn castle… but a castle nonetheless.

Stuffing the better drawn and more intelligent of her notes into her briefcase, she set the bag down by the front door and stepped into her high-heeled winter shoes. She peered at her wristwatch. Seeing that she still had time to stop somewhere and eat before the meeting with Souichi, she smiled and picked up her purse and briefcase. A coffee and breakfast pastry sounded  _excellent_.

Considering the fact that Maya didn't own a car, and instead chose to rely on public transportation, she was often surprised that she was rarely late for anything. This was yet again proven as she walked into the front lobby of her publishing company five minutes before eleven. Perfect timing. She dropped her emptied paper cup of coffee into the recycle bin by the door and approached the front desk.

"Good morning, Maya-san." Greeted the receptionist, a neutral expression on the woman's face. Apparently, observed Maya, she wasn't any happier at having to come in on Sunday than Maya was. "Gonda-san is expecting you. You can go ahead up."

"Thank you." Maya replied, bowing her head slightly as she walked past the desk. She reached the elevators a few moments later and she pressed the call button. One of the two elevator doors opened at once, and Maya stepped in, keying for the fifth floor as the doors closed behind her. The trip up four floors took only a short minute, and once the doors opened again, she walked out into the hallway adjoining the elevators. Another minute of walking found her in front of Souichi Honda's office. She knocked on the door.

"Come on in, Sagara-sensei!" Came the friendly voice of Souichi from behind the door. Maya opened the door and entered the room to find Souichi typing away at his desktop computer, his face a study in concentration. "I'll just be…" He said slowly. "Another minute."

"Sure." Maya said, walking over to the chair placed in front of the man's desk. "It's not like I have anything  _better_  to do today, anyway." That got a chuckle from the man behind the desk, but his typing didn't let up. After a short couple of minutes, Souichi sighed and sat back, putting his hands on the armrests of his chair.

"Sorry about that." He said, smiling. "Time waits for no one, you know."

Maya nodded and pulled her briefcase into her lap. "Yes, well, let's get this over with, shall we?" She opened the case and pulled out the assortment of papers and notes she had, not two hours ago, so haphazardly stuffed into it. As she began to sort them out on his desk, Souichi snorted lightly.

"Why am I not surprised?" He said, shaking his head. He then shrugged. "But you can't argue with results. Your last two pieces were particularly profitable."

Maya ignored him and, finishing taking out all the notes she brought with her, sat back. "There we are. Everything good I came up with since Friday."

Souichi leaned forward and peered down over the notes and drawings, inspecting them carefully. Humorous and seemingly nonchalant as he came off to be, Maya had to admit that the man had a good eye for ideas. It had been he that helped her promote her previous ideas to the higher-ups in the company, after all. Maya trusted Souichi's judgment. "When you said not to expect much, you weren't kidding." He deadpanned.

Maya snorted airily, a simple exhale through her nose. "I just started on Friday night."

The other picked up a piece of notebook paper, and then put it back in place of another. He examined it for a few minutes, and then put it down, sighing. "Well, it's something, anyway." He said. "At least I can tell the higher-ups on Monday that you haven't been wasting time these past six months."

Maya grimaced. She knew Souichi was looking out for her, but the way he said those words were essentially his way of scolding her. "I know…" She said dejectedly. "I have just been in a slump."

"So why did you suddenly start now?" The man asked conversationally, leaning back in his chair again. "These are," He waved his hand towards Maya's papers. "all barely the start to an idea. But even I know when you have inspiration."

Maya looked up at Souichi sharply. "What do you mean?" She asked.

He shrugged again. "Sagara-sensei, you may have been with us for only a couple of years, and only have two published books… children's books, at that… but I know your work." He explained. "I can tell when you have inspiration as opposed to working because you have to. That's why I shut down those other ideas you came up with before." Maya pursed her lips and looked away, turning her attention to the cabinet alongside the far end of the office. Souichi continued while she pouted. "You are a good artist, Sagara-sensei. You are talented. I just want you to know that."

"Thank you."

"Do you have any firm ideas for plot? Characters? Setting?" The other asked, leaning forward again to leaf through the noted strewn across the desk.

"No… I have nothing for vague ideas and sketches." Maya sighed. She turned her attention back to Souichi. A vague feeling caused her to reach into her coat pocket and fingered her phone. Something tickled in the back of her head, and she suddenly had a flash of…  _something_. "But I think I'll be able to come up with something soon." She said thoughtfully.

Souichi eyed Maya for a long moment, and then smiled widely. "Excellent. I can take what you have now to the uppers tomorrow."

Maya made a move to get out of the chair. "So I'm free to go?" She asked.

"Sure, sure…" The man said, chuckling again. "You can go back to sleep if you like. Just be sure to come up with  _more_  than just vague thoughts and eyes, alright?"

Maya smirked and got out of the chair, picking up her suitcase and making sure her purse was safely secured at her elbow. "I'll see what I can do." She said and, bowing lower than she usually did, turned toward the doorway. As she reached for the doorknob, she stopped. She suddenly… and quite unexpectedly… had a flash of insight. "I just thought of a title." She said, turning her head back towards Souichi. He sat up straight, blinking rapidly.

"Oh? Great! What is it?"

"The Princess and the Sparrow." Maya said, more to herself than to the man.

Souichi tilted his head and sucked in a breath between his teeth, a short whistling sound coming out of his mouth as he digested the name. After a few moments, he shrugged and nodded. "Well, it's a start."

0 – 0 – 0

**Interlude: Yoshino**

Yoshino looked up from her book, shivering slightly as an uncomfortable, yet somehow familiar feeling assaulted her. Over the years she occasionally had weird or inexplicable feelings; usually when minding her own business or doing something mundane like eating or watching television. They never really happened close together, either. They always seemed to happen maybe every other week...every other month... seemingly random times. Not only that, but she could never really remember having them before high school.

Odd, that.

She glanced at her hand, turning it slightly so she could make out the time on her wristwatch. Just before eleven. Yet another weird factor. There was never any set time that these odd sensations occurred either. It was either at totally acceptable times, or when she had been sleeping comfortably, dreaming about eating a really big bowl of chocolate pudding.

"Huh." She said aloud, more to herself than anyone else Or, that would have been the case, if Rei hadn't been in the room as well, working her way through a new curriculum she was in the process (a long process, too) of updating.

"Huh?" Rei repeated from her seat on the couch. Yoshino looked up to meet he somewhat confused expression.

"I just got another one of those weird feelings." Yoshino explained, reaching up to scratch the back of her head. When they happened, she usually told Rei about them. Neither woman could come up with any sort of explanation as to the origin of Yoshino's strange feelings, but it still felt good to have someone to talk to about them.

Rei opened her mouth and 'ahhed' in understanding. "Another one? When was the last one? After New Years?"

"Yea."

"What did you say they felt like again?"

Yoshino put down her book and pursed her lips in thought. A while ago, she had read a book about Asian folk legends and stories. In one of then, she had found a really good metaphor for how she felt when these odd feelings happened. "Like when Sun Wukong was being crushed by the mountain sent from the Buddha. He tried and tried, but he knew that he could not get away from the wrath of a more powerful entity than he." She shrugged helplessly. Paraphrasing or not, that was a pretty curtailed version of the story. Not that she could really understand it, anyway. 'The Journey West' was a very old, very complicated story. "Kinda like when you piss off some kind of powerful force… and it will definitely get back at you..."

"Huh."

"Yea. Weird, huh?"

"Mmm."

0 – 0 – 0

_End of Interlude 1_


	6. Chapter 6

**The Princess and the Sparrow**

_Chapter 6_

0 – 0 – 0

**_From the diary of Yumi Fukuzawa: Entry 2_ **

_From the moment Onee-sama told me she was leaving until the moment she actually left, I was inconsolable. The entire span of time was a week, I'm told... but to me, it felt like years._

_I didn't go out with everyone to celebrate that afternoon after the graduation ceremony, obviously. Someone, Touko or Rei most likely, had to contact my mother and father and tell them to come and get me. Honestly, if I would have been coherent enough to notice, I would have been ashamed of myself. I was like a child being picked up at lunchtime because of a stomachache._

_Touko, Yoshino and Shimako accompanied me back to my house. Rei didn't. I later heard she was trying to talk some sense into Onee-sama, but it obviously didn't do any good in the long run. What was done, had been done. No one could change it._

_At least, that's what I believed._

_Anyway, for the rest of the day I just cried. I cried in my room with my friends and Touko. I felt horrible. Not because of Onee-sama... although that was a big part of it. Luckily, the shock of what hadn't fully set in yet. Mostly, I felt horrible because I knew I was ruining Yoshino and Shimako's graduation day. It was supposed to be a happy day, and here I was acting like an idiot who couldn't take rejection. I stopped crying long enough to thank them for helping me get home and told them they could go enjoy the rest of their day. They refused, of course, which only made me feel worse._

_They stayed with me until night came. Then, promising they would be back the next day, they left. Touko stayed the night, completely surprising me. I didn't know why she wanted to stay, but I wasn't in any position to refuse. My parents let her stay, as she was one of the only people I responded to. I didn't eat dinner, even after Touko brought it up to my room and quietly asked me to eat. I just didn't have any appetite. After a while, she stopped asking and silently ate beside me on my bed._

_Touko slept in my room that night. My parents offered to put her up in the guest room, but she adamantly refused; saying that she wanted to be close to me. They couldn't really say no to that. She slept on the right side of my bed. I slept on the left. It was the first time we slept together in the same bed. I now wish it was because of a happier occasion._

_That was the first day._

_The second day, I still hadn't stopped crying. It was a little less than the previous day, because I was tired. But I still cried most of the day. My throat hurt from all the crying I did. Even though it wasn't very loud, all the stress from it all still took its toll._

_Yoshino and Shimako came in the morning. They tried to talk about random things with me. Rei's new project she was trying... speculations on the next year and how Touko, Nana and Noriko would do as the new roses... what to do or where to go during summer break... anything except graduation or Sachiko. I tried to contribute to the discussion, but all I could really manage when I wasn't crying was noncommittal grunts and the occasional 'yes' or 'no'._

_I didn't eat breakfast, lunch or dinner._

_The third day went very much the same as the second day._

_The fourth day, Rei accompanied Shimako and Yoshino to visit me. It went alright until Touko told them I hadn't eaten anything since... well... I don't really remember when. I still didn't have any appetite, so I refused. Together, they forced me to eat. Yoshino and Rei held me down while Touko shoved food into my mouth. I felt both angry and violated. I wanted to cry... but I had run out of tears by that point. Instead I just screamed, said vile things at them and bit at the inside of my cheek until I tasted blood._

_The fifth day, we came to the realization that I had not showered since the night before graduation. At my lack of response at the option of a shower, Touko pushed me into the bathroom and locked the door behind us. After a while, she concluded that I had no intention of getting in and forcibly stripped me. The fact that I had just started my period sometime during the night just made things worse. I broke into a fresh wave of tears in the shower as Touko brought me a fresh change of clothes and underwear._

_They forced me to eat again. I gave up fighting with them and just let it happen._

_On the sixth day, I refused to talk to anyone. Even Touko. They still forced me to eat and bathe._

_On the seventh day, my parents called Touko down to the living room. I didn't really know why. I didn't really care. Maybe they were finally telling her to go home? That would let me be alone finally._

_Yes. That would be good. Everyone was spending too much of their time with me. They had lives, didn't they? Shimako and Yoshino had university to prepare for. And Rei... she was in university! They didn't have the time to spend consoling me. Touko... she had a petite soeur to look after. A family to live with. School to attend._

_They all needed to go home. They all needed to go have fun. I was being a burden on all of them._

_Eventually, I noticed Touko's face in front of mine. Her eyes held a neutral but stony expression. "Onee-sama," She said softly. I blinked and nodded to show I was listening. "Sachiko-sama is downstairs. She came to see you."_

_What?_

_I blinked again, confused. Touko sensed my confusion and knelt down beside me on the floor. "Sachiko-sama is here... to say goodbye." She said again. She hesitated. "Do... you want to see her?"_

_See her? Why? She left. Why would I want to see her if she left me? What a silly question._

_I made a movement to shake my head, but stopped as Touko's words finally reached me. Sachiko Ogasawara. My Onee-sama. The girl I loved. She was here... to say goodbye. She was leaving, and she wanted to say goodbye to me. How was I to take that? She already said goodbye to me, didn't she? She had said with those sad, pained blue eyes-_

_"Gokigenyou."_

_She had already said goodbye to me. And now, she wanted to say it again. She wanted to have another twist at the knife, was that it? She wanted to make things even worse for me. She wanted... she wanted..._

_She wanted to have one last opportunity to see me._

_I knew that's what she really wanted, looking back. She was my Onee-sama, and she was leaving. Of course she wanted to see me one last time. I would have wanted the same thing, in her position. But, how I was... how badly I felt... how upset I was... I couldn't see it. I didn't want to see it._

_"Onee-sama?" Touko asked again, resting her hand on my shoulder and staring into my eyes._

_"..." I tried to speak. I realized my voice was too low, likely because I hadn't said anything for the past couple days aside from crying and screams. I cleared my throat and felt the tears coming back as I forced out a single word._

_"No, I don't."_

_It sounded raspy and tired. But it was the first real thing I said in days._

_They told me Onee-sama left after that. She left... and I haven't seen or heard from her since._

0 - 0 - 0

**Part 1**

To say Yumi Fukuzawa was nervous wouldn't be entirely truthful. To say she was unsettled would be an understatement. The closest word one could use to describe her current state of mind would be a resounding-

_Frenzied._

Yumi stood half-buried in her closet, going through every bit of clothing that she owned. A long-forgotten dark blue gown, last worn at a classmate's wedding. A light pink taffeta dress, gotten as a gift long ago but never worn. A suit that just didn't appeal to Yumi's sense of style, though it was tailored for women. An assortment of sweaters, blouses and jackets. Skirts... trousers... shorts.

Nothing good enough!

Yumi growled and tossed a pair of light blue jeans behind her head in frustration. She then sat back on her rear and sighed deeply. She coughed a bit when she sucked in another breath; there was too much dust in her closet. The small room was a place she didn't into very often and, as a result, old clothes and linens found their way into the depths of the closet to make friends with an untold number of dust bunnies. But, as it happened, when Yumi had torn through her dresser a few minutes earlier and come up with nothing good... she ended up crossing her fingers and hoping she had buried away something moderately attractive in the back of her closet.

She hadn't.

Finally giving up, she pulled herself back out of the stuffy closet and back into the relatively clean, cooler air of her bedroom. She completely ignored the pair of jeans she haphazardly threw on the floor and leapt unceremoniously on her bed. She grunted tiredly as she landed on the covers.

Why, why, WHY when you actually needed something nice to wear, nothing was ever available?

All these past years Yumi had been a veritable hermit, not needing to wear anything to impress except for business meetings. And, embarrassingly enough, more often than not Yumi had ended up borrowing some of Touko's clothes for such occurrences. Luckily, the two women were almost the same size (aside from the chest... poor Touko) so that part wasn't difficult. The problem was that in almost ten years, Yumi had not had any other reason to really go out and buy something cute. She  _wanted_  to... but when she had the opportunity, she always looked, never bought. A prime example would be just previous Saturday, when she had gone out to Shinami Mall with Touko, Yoshino and Rei. She had made vague plans with herself to buy something, but when the time came, and what with Yoshino and Rei's 'dress-up' surprise attack, she never got around to it.

And now, when Yumi actually needed something attractive... well, for lack of a better term... she was screwed.

Yumi rolled over on her stomach, pulling her phone out of her pocket as she settled on her front, and brought up the messages. Aside from a few messages from Touko and Rei, there was one other new message. Just received not fifteen minutes before, Yumi was all but shocked to find that none other than Maya Sagara, the woman she had met last week, had sent her the message. What was even more unnerving was the contents. Yumi licked her lips and opened the message, reading it again.

_Hello Yumi-san!_

_How are you? I hope you had a good weekend! Mine was very busy- it is why I haven't replied your message until now._

_This might sound presumptuous, but I wanted to ask if you would be willing to have some coffee and chat with me tomorrow at the same cafe as before. Are you available? I promise I will not spill any on you this time!_

_Haha!_

_If you can make it, let me know._ _I_ _look forward to hearing from you,_

_Maya_

Unless Yumi was mistaken, Maya's invitation sounded an awful lot like a 'date'. Additionally, Yumi had nothing to wear on said 'date'.

If that was the case, then no; screwed wasn't the right term. It wasn't powerful enough. More like... fucked. Yes. That was it. Fucked. Yumi was fucked.

"Gah!" She cried out and slammed her hands on the bed, a soft 'whumf' sounding as they hit the soft bedding. For a long time, she lay there, unmoving. She worked through her options as the clocked ticked away her afternoon. What could she do? She could refuse, of course. But, if she was truthful with herself, Yumi didn't really want to turn down the older woman's invitation. She didn't really know why, but something about Maya Sagara interested Yumi. Was it because she looked so much like  _her_?Sounded so much like her? No... that couldn't be it. If that were the case, then Yumi would likely not want anything to do with her. Why would you want to see someone you hated anyway? That didn't make any sense.

So why, then?

Yumi craned her neck and rested her chin on her bed. She brought her phone up to her face so she could see it. The screen had gone dim, and she keyed the screen to life again. The message from Maya was still there. The invitation was still there, unchanged, tempting Yumi. She wanted to meet the dark-haired woman again, if only to find out what exactly about her Yumi found so...

So… what?

Yumi shook her head forcefully from side to side, trying to shake her muddled thoughts around her head to try and make sense of everything. It didn't work.

There was nothing for it, then. She would meet her tomorrow. Unfortunately, that still left the problem of not having anything good to wear. Date or not... Yumi wasn't about to consciously go out and meet this woman wearing the stuff she normally wore. Something had to be done about that. Today.

Yumi brought up her contact list and scrolled through it, looking for one name in particular. Towards the end of the list she found her target. Pressing her lips together tightly, Yumi pressed the 'call' toggle and pressed the phone to the side of her hear, waiting patiently as the dial tone sounded softly in her ear. Ignoring the pumping in her chest, Yumi clenched her free hand tightly into a ball and waited patiently for the other end to answer. After five rings, the call connected.

"Good afternoon, Yumi-san." Shimako Toudou's light, clear voice sounded in Yumi's ear.

"Hey, Shimako-san." Yumi greeted, not able to keep the smile from her face despite the pounding in her chest. Out of all of her friends and acquaintances, Shimako was the best choice for her current… issue. That was, of course, if the woman had time. "Sorry to bother you, but I was wondering if you could help me with a small problem."

There were a few short moments of silence. "A problem?" Shimako finally repeated, sounding concerned.

"Yea…" Yumi laughed, a little embarrassed. "Actually… it's not all that important but, could you help me buy some clothes this afternoon?"

0 - 0 - 0

**Part 2**

Luckily for Yumi, the mall was only five stops away on the bus. That meant that after putting all the clothes she had tossed around back to where they belonged, choosing out a 'mall-friendly' outfit (which, coincidentally, was the same outfit she wore the previous Saturday during her outing), and actually waiting for and catching a bus, Yumi made it to the mall in exactly thirty-nine minutes.

Five minutes before Shimako herself arrived.

Yumi watched her friend park her car from the main entrance of the mall and gave a wave once she came fully into view. Shimako returned her wave with a wide smile and quickly approached Yumi, catching her friend in a hug.

When the two women parted, Yumi took a closer look at Shimako. She hadn't changed a lot in the three weeks from New Year's (or high school, for that matter). Her light, chestnut colored hair was shorter; the woman apparently had it cut recently. Though it still spilled down past her shoulders. Her face, while was never really 'round' or 'young-looking', still retained a youthfulness that made her seem more energetic than she made herself out to be. Though, thought Yumi as she took in her friend's face, part of the effect may be from the make-up. She wore a white winter coat that went down to her thighs and shin-high white boots over a long pair of grey winter leggings.

Suddenly self-conscious of the fact that Yumi might be caught staring, she blinked up to see her friend smiling at her. "Shall we?" Shimako asked, pulling Yumi's attention back to the task at hand.

"Ah!" Yumi coughed into her hand to cover her embarrassment. "Yea. Thanks again for coming with, Shimako-san."

Shimako shrugged and, with a nod from Yumi, the two women walked into the mall. The mall hadn't changed greatly from Saturday, except for having noticeably fewer people walking around. Virtually all of the teenagers from Yumi's weekend visit were absent, most likely due to the fact that they were in school until later in the afternoon. As a result, most of the people were either Yumi's age or older. Not that it mattered to her anyway, Yumi thought as she matched Shimako's pace to the elevator at the far side of the mall's main pavilion. She was here on a mission, and that mission was not to mingle with strangers or people-watch.

The pair entered the elevator, and before Yumi could press the button for the ladies' clothing section, Shimako stopped her with a hand on Yumi's elbow. "Actually," She said, eyeing the labeled buttons on the elevator's command panel. "I was rather hoping we could rest for a bit before taking care of your errand. They have a good food court here, so I thought we could sit for a while and catch up."

"That sounds lovely." Yumi said after a moment, and meant it. Shimako had explained she wasn't doing anything important that afternoon when Yumi had initially asked for her help, but that still didn't make Yumi feel any better for asking her friend to help her at such short notice. If there was one thing she disliked most about herself, it was putting people out by being a burden to them. It had been for that reason she was so hesitant to call her friend to ask for help, thinking the woman was working or already had plans. However, if Shimako legitimately wanted to take their time, get a snack, and chat a while, Yumi was more than willing to oblige.

The two women got off on the top floor of the mall, and found themselves in the spacious food court. The food court was laid out in a way that resembled a giant horseshoe; with the restaurants and food stands in a large half-circle surrounding both a large seating area where patrons could eat, as well as a large, floorless area where one could look down below at the lower floors of the mall. At the outside edge of the horseshoe were panes of glass, where one could go and look outside at the surrounding cityscape from a good eight stories up. It was quite the view, considering the surrounding area was generally residential. But strangely enough, not many people took more than a couple minutes at a time to actually enjoy the view, choosing instead to sit in the middle section to eat their food.

"Are you in the mood for anything in particular?" Shimako asked Yumi as she looked around the food court. There weren't a lot of people, being the middle of the afternoon. So there were plenty of places to sit.

"Not really… I'm open." Yumi said.

Shimako nodded and pointed towards a restaurant half-way down the horseshoe. "In that case, how about that one? It's quick, and not that expensive." Yumi looked in the direction her friend gestured. The restaurant in question was a fairly well-known fast-food chain. As she turned the idea over in her mind, Yumi realized that she actually hadn't eaten fast-food in quite a long time.

"That sounds surprisingly good." Yumi said agreeably. "After you."

The line was almost non-existent, and it didn't take the pair long to order their food, return back to the main seating area and sit themselves down comfortably. After setting aside her bag, Yumi started on her sandwich. "So, how have you been?" She asked after her first sizable bite.

Shimako tilted her head in an apathetic gesture, clearly meaning that she hadn't been doing all that much recently. After downing her first mouthful, she set her hamburger down and cleared her throat. "I have been doing alright. Aside from work, I have been spending my time relatively quietly." She took a drink from her paper cup, sucking gently on the red-and-white striped straw sticking up from the plastic top. After swallowing, she continued. "After New Year's, I enjoyed the rest of my vacation. I saw Noriko once after that. And… well, that's it."

Yumi nodded; that was simple enough. "Yea, Yoshino-san said you were busy last Saturday."

At once, Shimako's face took on an apologetic visage. "Oh," She said. "I'm sorry I missed the get-together. I had a weekend consolation to do and there wasn't anybody else available..."

"Its fine, its fine." Yumi said, waving away the apology with a smile- and her sandwich. She felt her cheeks color and grabbed her sandwich with both hands. "Uh… anyway. Thanks again for taking the time to come out and help me. I know you are working and well," Yumi put her sandwich back down and wrung her hands together nervously. "I don't have anyone else to really turn to."

Yumi's friend blinked, surprised. Immediately Yumi felt a small twinge of regret. It was true that she  _didn't_  have any other friends to turn to, so she didn't feel bad about saying it. But, she knew the few friends she  _did_  have had a soft spot for her, and were sometimes a little… overprotective of that fact. They didn't need to be reminded that she didn't know anyone else personally. However, Shimako quickly got over her surprise and took a contemplative bite of her hamburger. "Touko-chan is busy?" She finally asked after swallowing.

Yumi laughed hollowly. "To say the least. Between med-school, working at the hospital, seeing her family, friends, and Aya-chan… it's a wonder she has  _any_ time for me." Shimako stared at Yumi for a few long moments while she took another bite of hamburger. From the pensive look on her face, it looked like she wanted to say something. But when she swallowed, took another sip from her cup, and didn't say anything, Yumi continued. "So, that essentially left it to either you…" She looked away towards the closest window, but shot a glance at her friend out of the corner of her eye. "Or Yoshino-san to buy clothes with me."

From the twitch that just crossed Shimako's face, Yumi could tell that the point made it across just fine. Shimako was still for a long moment, and then seemed to shake herself out of whatever memory flashed through her head. Obviously, Yumi thought as she took a long drink from her iced tea, Shimako had been subjected to their mutual friend's so-called 'shopping trips' as well. She knew what it was like, and therefore understood Yumi's position.

"I understand." Shimako said seriously, her eye blazing with sudden energy. She leaned forward to grasp both Yumi's hands with her own. "I promise to not disappoint you, Yumi-san." After a few moments of silence, the two women broke into a laugh.

 _Yes…_  thought Yumi as she laughed with her friend.  _You have never disappointed me before, Shimako-san. None of you ever have._

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 3**

"So, what exactly are you looking for?" Shimako asked Yumi as the two women made their way down the elevator to the women's clothing section of the mall. "You mentioned something to wear on the phone but..." She sent a sidelong look at the brown-haired woman. "That is pretty vague."

Yumi grimaced and hung her head. "Yea, I know..." She sighed as the elevator stopped at the home appliances floor. Two people exited the lift, leaving Yumi, Shimako and one other older woman in the small compartment. "I want something-" She paused, searching for the right word to use. " _Good_. _"_ She settled on the word. It wasn't quite right, but it was the best she could come up with.

Shimako cocked a light-brown eyebrow at Yumi. "I happen to like your current wardrobe, Yumi-san" She said, her tone low, but still friendly. "It's sensible, and fits your personality."

"Yea... personality of a hermit." Yumi grumbled. Shimako giggled lightly into her hand, her laugh barely loud enough to be heard over the low drone of machinery around them.

"I was going to say 'low-key'. But hermit works too." She said. Yumi snorted, but chose to ignore the comment.

After another few moments, the elevator doors opened again on Yumi and Shimako's floor. The pair exited, and were met with an array of different shops and stores. The different boutiques sold everything from accessories, shoes and hats, all the way to clothing. This particular floor of Shinami mall was tailored to women, though a few men could be seen trailing along after women, their arms heavy with bags and merchandise. It was a sight that was relatively familiar to Yumi, considering she had just been there a few days before.

"And here we go again..." She mumbled quietly. She thought she had spoken to quietly for her friend to hear, but from the confused look Shimako sent towards Yumi, she had apparently been wrong.

"Again?" The lawyer asked, tilting her head questioningly.

Yumi waved her hand in front of her. "I mean... I was just here on Saturday with Yoshino, Rei and Touko. It's just kind of funny that I am here again so soon."

"Ah- yes." Shimako nodded and looked around them, taking in the different stores. As she scanned the area, her face scrunched up a little. "Out of curiosity, why didn't you look for new clothes then?"

Yumi leveled her eyes at her friend. "I repeat: I came here with  _Yoshino_ , Rei and Touko." Honestly, did she need to spell it out? This time, though, Shimako obviously understood what Yumi was trying to say.

"Ah. She repeated the sound. She smiled knowingly and patted Yumi sympathetically on the shoulder. "I imagine it was very hard on you."

Wordlessly, Yumi withdrew her phone from her coat pocket and opened the picture Yoshino sent her the previous Sunday. The very picture that if ever made public, Yumi would assure a very painful, very slow death for Yoshino. Right before killing herself, of course. With no sound whatsoever, she passed her phone to Shimako. The former white rose of Lillian would be the only other person she would think of showing the picture to, after all. Not because the two women were friends, though... although that was a large part of it. Really, it was because Yumi knew Shimako had, at one time or another, also been subjected to Yoshino's shopping trips. As such, they had a sense of camaraderie to uphold.

Yumi passed her phone over to Shimako's grasp, and waited for the woman's comment. She didn't have to wait long.

"Oh my." Shimako breathed. Yumi felt her cheeks burn in response and she hung her head as the two of them walked past a shoe store. "I wasn't aware you had the hips for those kind of pants."

"Neither was I."

"Are you wearing a bra with this shirt?"

"No..."

"...Is that your nipple?"

"...Yes."

"Hmm." Shimako hummed wordlessly and tilted the phone horizontal, as if trying to get a better look. She looked thoughtful for a few moments, and then- "Can I have a copy of this?"

"Shimako-san!" Yumi gaped, her mouth wide open in shock. Was the woman  _serious?!_

Shimako's lip twitched, and after a second of silence, she broke into a fit of laughter. "Oh, Yumi-san! I'm sorry- I couldn't resist!" She giggled, holding her side with her free hand and holding Yumi's phone back with the other. Yumi snatched it away and stuffed it back into her pocket, looking deliberately away from her 'friend'. That was just cold. Shimako continued giggling as Yumi walked away, and eventually calmed down enough to catch up to her. "Have you showed Touko-chan that yet?" She asked, still sporting a grin.

Yumi whirled around on Shimako, her eyes wide as saucers. "Are you kidding me?!" She hissed. "There is no  _way_  I'm going to show this to Touko! She'll  _murder_  Yoshino-san—With her own phone!"

...And no one would -ever- find the body.

Shimako giggled again and nodded. "Very true. She is very protective over her Onee-sama, after all." Yumi groaned loudly and fell back into step beside Shimako.

"You're telling me." She agreed tiredly. The two women continued pacing their way through the rows of stores, passing by a particularly cute, Hello Kitty-themed accessory store, until Yuimi cleared her throat. "Anyway... I uh... I wanted to get something new to wear today."

"New." Shimako echoed. "Everything here is new, Yumi-san."

"Fine." Yumi growled. "New and... cute." She said the last part a bit quieter than she intended, prompting Shimako to lean closer as they walked.

"What was that last?" She pressed.

"...cute."

Again, Shimako leaned closer. "One more time?"

"I said  _cute!_ " Yumi exclaimed loudly. Shimako leaned back again, her face equal parts surprised and pleased.

"Now we are getting somewhere." She said, smiling. "Can I press for more information as to why?"

Yumi sighed loudly, finally having enough of this game. "If you must. I am..." She paused hesitantly. "Well, I'm meeting someone tomorrow." Shimako nodded, taking a moment to peer into a store. Seeing nothing of interest, she continued walked beside Yumi.

"And this 'meeting' isn't really a business meeting, is it?" Shimako probed.

"I guess you could say that." Yumi sighed again. She stopped walking to look into a shop. It looked good from the outside. The mannequins in the front displayed a few different outfits that Yumi thought were attractive. Different colors (spring colors and shades), and styles ranging from skirts to trousers, as well as stylized coats. "How about here?" She asked her friend, pointing her thumb towards the store.

Shimako looked at the displays, then in the store itself. "It looks acceptable." She said, and the pair entered the shop. The inside was fairly large, and was filled with rows and rows of different colored clothing. Shirts, blouses, jackets, trousers, shorts, skirts, dresses, and even some different styles of scarves, hats and gloves for colder weather. It was a fairly good store, Yumi thought as she scanned the large room full of clothes. As least, she though so, anyway. She noticed Shimako had walked a few paces ahead of her and caught up after a moment. "So it's not a business meeting." Shimako prompted her friend as she run her hand down a line of shirts.

"No. At least, I don't think so. It is... well... it's getting coffee and having a chat."

Shimako's eyes found their way to Yumi's and then passed over just as soon as they stopped. A smiled flashed over her features. "I see." She simply said. "In that case, I have an idea of what to get." She stepped up to a close by rack of clothing.

Yumi arched an eyebrow. "Oh? Just like that? I would think it's…"

Even before Yumi finished her sentence, Shimako presented her with a blouse and skirt combo from the line of clothes, holding it up for her to see.

"It's… actually not bad." Yumi finished, blinking in surprise. It really wasn't bad, she mused as she took the articles of clothing from her friend. In fact, it was really good. How the Hell did she do that? Looking around, Yumi quickly found a mirror and walked over to it. She held the top over her coat and the skirt over her jeans and took a moment to look herself over.

"Not too bad, if I say so myself." Shimako said into Yumi's thoughts, walking up to her shoulder. She joined her friend in her observations, and reached up to adjust the blouse against her chest. "Maybe a size larger." She wondered, gesturing to the area of Yumi's chest.

Yumi exhaled sharply through her nose. "My chest isn't  _that_ big, Shimako-san."

"Not according to that picture, Yumi-san." Her friend shot back, her smile turning sardonic. Yumi snickered quietly; Shimako's sense of humor was much more bearable than Yoshino's, but they sometimes shared similarities. It was at times like there were Yumi couldn't help but laugh.

"Well, at least I have that going for me." She grinned and held out the blouse and skirt back towards Shimako. "I think that, and one more different style should do." Shimako nodded and hung Yumi's chosen articles of clothing over her arm.

"Yes," She said as she looked around for her next target. "Not all of us can be so lucky…" She trailed off at the end of her thought, shooting Yumi a humored look out of the corner of her eye.

"I'll assume that was a stab at Touko and Yoshino-san and agree accordingly." Yumi said, giving herself one final appraising look in the mirror. Shimako nodded and matched Yumi in a high-five, joining her friend in a fit of giggles.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 4**

The bells jingled as the front door to the café opened. It snowed earlier that morning, and continued into the late morning. It wasn't all that deep, but it was enough so that when the door opened, a flurry of snowflakes blew in with Yumi as she entered. Shutting the door as quickly and quietly as she could, she swept her gaze nervously around the room. There were a few people seated at random tables, some at the counter, either ordering or seated at the barstool in front of the counter, but there were no more than ten people in the small café.

Maya Sagara was not there yet.

Yumi let out a sigh of relief and, seeing that her usual corner booth was empty, made her way to sit down. Once she reached her destination, she shrugged off her coat and sat down, setting her shed clothing on the seat beside her next to her bag. Taking just a moment to straighten her new skirt and blouse, she made sure she was at least  _alright_ looking before she sat down. After all, when Maya finally got there, the first thing she would likely see was Yumi in her new clothes (thought the woman wouldn't really know they were new). First impressions- in this case, second impressions, were important and she wanted to look as good as possible.

Finally comfortable, Yumi glanced out of the window beside her. From where she sat, she could get a good view of the outside entrance to the café. If she remained vigilant, she should be able to notice when Maya would arrive. And as it looked now... she had at least another minute or so of peace.

Yumi reached into her bag and withdrew her hand mirror. It was a small one, one she rarely used, but it was useful enough. She opened the mirror and brought it up to her face. She saw the well-recognized features of the woman looking back at her. Her brown eyes, accented just so by a light application of eyeliner. Her somewhat pale complexion, gotten from years of working indoors and not properly taking care of herself, supplemented by foundation and a hint of blush. And her lips, the same shade they always were (Yumi had never, ever worn lipstick before, and likely never would). It had taken quite a long time to decide on how much makeup she should actually use, and finally deciding that because Maya never specifically said this was a  _date_ , and instead called it 'getting coffee' and 'having a chat', Yumi was better off playing it safe and not going overboard.

But that still didn't help the feeling of nervousness that slowly started creeping into the pit of her stomach as she clicked her mirror shut and stuffed it back into her bag. Just what was she doing there, anyway? Why did she ever agree to meet with Maya again? What was the point? To get to know the woman more? To make friends? It was true that Yumi didn't have many friends beside Yoshino, Shimako and Rei, but surely she didn't need friends badly enough to... to...

God... she just didn't know.

She knew there was no logical problem with meeting Maya. So then... just what was so bad about meeting her? What was making her so nervous? So… unnerved? She looked like  _her_ , sure… but she wasn't the same person. She wasn't. Yumi had already determined that. If Maya was, there was no way in Heaven or Hell Yumi would ever willingly choose to see her, let alone have coffee with the woman. So then… what?

Yumi felt something tickle her palm, and reached over with her other to find a thin coat of sweat on the inside of her hand. Well aware of how  _not_  warm the café was and therefore finding herself sweating quite surprising, Yumi wiped her hand with a napkin from a dispenser on the end of the table and took a long, steady breath.

She was not this nervous. She wouldn't let herself be for no reason. It was stupid. It was childish. It was pointless.

But, no matter how many times she told herself that, her heart still pumped painfully in her chest, her throat still prickled with dry air when she breathed, her underarms still itched with sweat. All the signs pointed to the same conclusion. There was no doubt in her mind—

She was scared. She was scared of seeing that face.

Yumi shook her head and clasped her hands together, ignoring the wet feeling pooling between them. If she stayed here, she would meet that face. That same face. The face that she hated so much. The face that she also, at one time, loved so much. The first time had been a fluke; an accidental meeting of circumstance that forced her to deal with it… and she hadn't even handled to as well as she could have otherwise. Could she handle it properly now that she expected to? Did she even want to?

Suddenly entertaining the thought of simply getting up and walking out of the café, Yumi made a move to get up, but stopped before she completed her action. She was almost complete standing up, with her bag dangling loosely in her hand, when her eyes found the front door. It had just opened, revealing the exact same person Yumi had just now decided she didn't want to meet.

Maya Sagara.

The woman wore her hair in a loose ponytail, her long strands of black hair falling down in front of her shoulder. Her sharp, dark eyes blinked as she adjusted to the lower lighting of the cafe. She reached up, careful as to not let her bad slip off her shoulder, to brush off any stray snowflakes that had found their way to her clothes. In the process of brushing off her coat, her eyes wandered around the main room of the cafe and, a little too soon for Yumi, landed on her own. Maya turned towards Yumi and gave a small wave of greeting as she tapped her boots on the doormat, ridding any soot and dirt from them.

Yumi, now seeing there was no escape, let herself fall back into her seat and returned the older woman's wave with a jerky imitation.

Shit. Now there was nothing for it.

Maya straightened her bag on the shoulder and slowly made her way towards Yumi's booth. Her heels clacked on the hardwood floor, each one slow and steady. Her bangs swayed in time with her pace. Yumi tried to return the woman's smile as she approached the table, but it probably came out as a grimace.

That face...

Maya stopped in front of the table and bowed- a bending her knees in a feminine gesture. "Good afternoon, Yumi-san." She said, a light smile playing about her lips. Inwardly, Yumi relaxed somewhat.

 _At least she didn't say 'gokigenyou'..._ Yumi though tiredly. She sat up straight as Maya set her bag on the seat across from her. "Good a-" She started, but only got as far as the second word before having her throat fail on her. She coughed (into her hand, which flew reflexively to her mouth) and grimaced again.

A wonderful start.

At Maya's slightly concerned look, Yumi waved her hand in front of her and forced a smile out. It was harder than she thought. She worked moisture into her mouth and throat before trying to speak again. "Sorry-" She rasped. "Just a little dry outside."

"Ah..." The dark-haired woman said, slipping off her coat and placing it down beside her bag. "It is quite dry and cold today. Have you ordered anything to drink yet?"

Yumi shook her head. "I just got here a couple minutes ago."

"Excellent. Shall we go and order together?" Maya asked, her face still having that same, familiar peaceful smile gracing it.

"S-sure." Yumi forced out and got to her feet. The pair walked from their booth to the counter, and fell into a short line behind one other person.

After a moment's contemplation, the older of the two women turned towards Yumi. "I'm going to get the double espresso and some chocolate cake. What about you?"

Yumi couldn't help but feel somewhat surprised. Not that there was anything wrong with a  _double_  and  _chocolate_  cake, of course. It just seemed… different from what she expected somehow. Instead of vocalizing her misgivings, though, she just settled for a shrug. "I think I'll just have some tea and pound cake." She said, giving the menu hanging above the back wall a once-over. She knew what was on the menu, anyway.

Maya cocked her head to the side, likely surprised with Yumi getting tea instead of coffee, but chose not to press the topic. Instead, she turned back towards the counter and approached to order.

"Good morning!" The young woman behind the counter chirped. Yumi blinked, suddenly remembered that it was technically still the morning. "Are you two together?" The girl looked between Maya and Yumi, clearly understanding that the women were chatting together but still tactful enough to ask anyway. Yumi felt her ears burn slightly at the question, and her stomach clenched.

 _Together?_  She heard her own voice echo in back of her mind.

"We are ordering together," Maya explained for the both of them. "But we are paying separately." The girl nodded in understanding and tapped a button on the register. Yumi felt herself deflate, her ears still burning in silent shame. Of course it wasn't  _that_ kind of together… what in the Hell was she thinking?

"What will you have?" The clerk smiled cheerfully.

"I'll take a double espresso and some chocolate cake."

"Alright… and what would you like?" Yumi heard the question directed at herself and hunched over a little, feeling somewhat self-conscious from both the girl's and Maya's eyes on her. Why did everyone seem to stare at her right when she was feeling embarrassed with herself?

"Um…" She said mumbled, then cleared her throat. "I'll have Darjeeling and a slice of pound cake." The girl nodded and tapped a key on the register.

"Would you prefer bagged or tea-leaves?" One particular aspect of this café that Yumi liked best was, when she wasn't in the mood for coffee and preferred some tea, that it carried tea leaves. Not many different kinds… but they carried them. Tea leaves, she learned from her time in high school, seemed to bring out the flavour of the tea better. Not to mention they were generally more impressive to others.

"Leaves, please." Yumi replied, earning another nod from the girl behind the counter. Yumi and Maya paid separately (that was a good sign, at least) and chose to linger by the pick-up counter until their orders were ready. Seeing as they only had an espresso and hot water to wait for, it just didn't seem necessary to go back to their table to wait. After a minute, another barista placed a rather pretty-looking teacup full of steaming water on the counter along with a large slice of yellow pound cake.

"Fukuzawa-san, your order." The girl said, scaring Yumi somewhat until she remembered that they wrote down her name when she ordered the tea. "The tea leaves are in this jar." The girl placed a small, glass jar on her tray. "Just return here for more hot water if you need any."

"Thank you." Yumi replied, taking the tray with both hands. She turned her head towards Maya, who gestured towards their booth with her hand.

"Go ahead— I'll be right behind you, Yumi-san." She said, her smile never leaving her face. Yumi took the woman at her word and went ahead to sit down first. She settled herself at her side of the booth and placed the teacup in front of her. The jar of tea leaves went next, right beside the cup. Lastly, she placed the plate of cake beside the tea. Sliding her tray to the end of the table, Yumi placed her hands by her teacup, lacing her fingers together as lightly as hhe could manage (which was still pretty tightly, considering the discomfort in her stomach), and waited patiently for her companion to join her.

Maya didn't take long; her espresso wasn't that more difficult to make than hot water. This was mainly due to the fact that the place usually left the espresso machine on quite often. A lot of the regulars rather liked the taste of the drink, as it were. After gathering her tray, the older woman joined Yumi at their booth and slid into the seat across from her. At the sight of Yumi waiting patiently for Maya to join her, Maya blinked guiltily. "You… didn't have to wait for me, Yumi-san." She said, her smile turning a little bashful.

Yumi shook her head and picked up a spoon from beside her teacup. "It's not a big deal." She said, opening the jar of tealeaves and digging out a spoonful of the dark, dried leaves. "I had a kind of… well, let's just say I was educated fairly strictly and had to wait quite often." She dropped the leaves into her teacup and stirred them a little. After putting her spoon back, she covered her cup with the lid. "Anyway, it's alright. Don't worry about it, Maya-san."

"Thank you, in any case." Maya accepted that and, picking up a fork, started on a small piece of her cake. She sliced off a piece of the dark, spongy food and peered at it carefully. "I haven't had the chocolate cake here before." She said contemplatively.

Yumi exhaled through her nose and couldn't help but smile a little. The woman got something without knowing how it was? How odd. Then again… how else was one supposed to branch out and learn new things if one didn't? "I tried it before. I think it's quite good." She supplied. Maya flicked her eyes to Yumi's, then back to the cake and popped the forkful into her mouth. After she chewed for a few seconds and swallowed, she smiled again.

"You are right! It's really sweet." She sighed and put her fork back down. "It was a good choice. What about the pound cake?" She gestured to the morsel Yumi hadn't touched it yet. She was waiting until her tea was ready before starting on it.

"I usually get it when I drink tea. It goes well with black tea, usually. Their almond cookies go quite well with their green tea, too." Yumi said.

Maya blinked and her lip twitched a little. "Uh… wow. You know a lot about tea, don't you?" She said hesitantly. Yumi shrugged and picked up her teacup. Knowing from experience that it should be about ready (even if it wasn't, Yumi was especially parched), she pressed the lid down and sipped a little from the cup. She relished the mellow taste of Darjeeling on her tongue.

"Only a little. My friends and I drink tea together pretty often." Yumi said after taking another sip.

"Were you in a tea ceremony club in high school or something?"

The question was odd, Yumi thought. So odd that she actually let her face slip into a confused, blank stare. "Tea ceremony?" She repeated stupidly.

"Yea." Maya nodded, barely able to keep a grin off her face at Yumi's expression. She would be one of the first that succeeded. If it had been Yoshino or someone else, Yumi knew they would not even bother hiding their amusement at the face Yumi was most assuredly making. "You know a lot about tea— black and green… and well…" She waved her hand toward the lidded cup and the jar of tea leaves. "You just seem pretty competent with traditional style of tea drinking."

Yumi set her teacup down and cocked her head to the side, considering the older woman's words. Did she really know more than most people? No… she just learned all these things in high school. Sure she didn't have a common schooling, but still... that didn't mean she was an expert or anything. She just knew the best way to fully enjoy most tea.

Setting the excuse in her mind, she just shrugged. "I guess I learned about that kind of thing in high school." She said. "It just stuck with me ever since. My friends from high school and I all act like that, too, so I guess I never broke the habit."

Maya shook her head, her dark blue eyes alight with interest. "Don't break the habit! It's very…" She pursed her pink lips, fishing for a word to fit. "Refined." She finally said after a moment.

Yumi couldn't help it; she barked out a laugh. Refined? Her? Not in a million years. Touko was light-years ahead of herself in the 'refined, classy lady' department. Hell, even Yoshino could act more refined than Yumi if the woman tried (and fell back on her pre-heart surgery years of practice acting like a quiet, shy girl). No, there was just no way that Yumi came off as refined.

"You have no idea how unrefined I actually am." Yumi said, shaking her head with a smile.

Maya leaned forward, one hand under her chin and the other holding up her espresso. "Well then, tell me about yourself." She said, taking a sip of her drink. "Where did you go to school? What kind of school teaches you how to drink tea?" She added with a chuckle.

Yumi smiled and laughed through her nose. It did sound like she said it that way, didn't it? "I went to Lillian Academy for Women." She said, slicing off a corner from her cake with her fork and popping it into her mouth.

"Lillian Academy?" Maya repeated, sounding interested. "The Catholic all-girls school in Musashino?" Yumi nodded, still chewing her cake. "I heard about that place. It is supposed to be a very… high-standing academy."

Yumi sighed inwardly at that; she knew what that really meant, and was ready to cover herself. After swallowing, she set back down her fork. "Not everyone who goes there is rich, honestly." She explained. "While some of the people that go there are daughters of high class families and company president's daughters, some are middle class as well. There are even some from orphanages and on scholarships. Since it's a Catholic school, there is actually very little issue if you want to attend there. A lot of daughters from rich companies attend there simply because it's a very old, very traditional academy." Maya seemed to accept that, and nodded in understanding. Yumi did say she had a family business with her father and brother, after all. So Maya likely assumed that she was one of the 'middle-class' students that attended there.

"And so you were in the tea ceremony club there?" Maya asked again.

Again, Yumi laughed softly. "No. I was actually in the student council. We all often drank tea in the student council."

Maya's eyes widened slightly, surprised by this news. "The student council, huh?" She breathed. "Impressive… I would never have assumed that. You seem way too easy-going for the student council."

Yumi's mouthed popped open; it was all she could do to keep from looking put out by that. Did she really look that unreliable? She collected herself as well as she could and puffed out her chest, sitting up straighter. She put on her best Rosa Chinensis face, one that she had perfected over her senior year in high school (and one that she coincidentally hadn't used in a very long time), cleared her throat and levelled her gaze at the woman in front of her. "I'll have you know, Sagara-san," She said, her tone falling back to an almost-forgotten authoritative tone she had often used in her third year. "That I was student council  _president_  in my third year." Sure it was a joint-presidency with Yoshino and Shimako… but Maya didn't need to know that. Yumi's pride was on the line, here! "Not only that, but my successor- trained by  _me_  exclusively- was the best student council president in a decade." That bit was actually true. Touko's term as Rosa Chinensis would go down in Lillian history as the most influential in a very long time. Aya had tremendous shoes to fill when she later took on the title of 'Red Rose'.

Apparently, from what Yoshino told Yumi a while ago, Touko Matsudaira's name had yet to be forgotten in the halls of Lillian.

Maya grinned, her eyes wide, and waved her hands in front of her defensively. "Alright, alright! I believe you…" She put her hand to her chest and took a breath. "Wow, you can be intense when you want to be."

Yumi shrugged one shoulder. "I guess." She supplied, her ton returning to a conversational level. "What about you? Where did you go to school?"

"Ah… just a public school in Kyoto. I was in the art club." She said, fingering her cup of espresso. Half of it was already gone.

Having never gone to a public school, Yumi could never really understand what it would be like. She had quite a few different classmates in college that attended public school, but never really bothered to ask them about the experience. She never really talked much in university, anyway… but that was beside the point. Yumi opened her mouth to ask the woman in front of her about it, but something else was more pressing to know at that moment.

"You are from Kyoto… right?" She asked.

"En." Came the monosyllable reply.

"Then why don't you speak with a Kinki dialect?" Yumi asked, peering at Maya speculatively.

Maya's cheeks coloured at once, and she lowered her head, her dark bangs covering her eyes. "I, uh… I try really hard to hide it, actually." The older woman said slowly, frowning. "It's quite embarrassing at times, to speak Kansai-ben here in Tokyo. People think it's kind of... well… funny. Since I have lived here for ten years, I've picked up the local dialect well enough." She raised her head again, her frown replaced by an embarrassed smile. "But it slips out sometimes when I am agitated or excited." She winked at Yumi. "So dun' tell anyone, 'kay ?"

Yumi sat back, slightly thrown off by the dialect change at the end and from the wink the woman just sent her, but was able to match the surprising gesture with a smile of her own. "No problem at all. I always thought Kansei-ben was kind of cute, anyway." She said, snickering slightly. The accent change was clearly on purpose and was actually more funny that Yumi would care to admit. A Kansei-ben accent with that face? Truly astounding. In fact, had she slipped dialects when they met the first time? Yumi couldn't quite remember. Oh well. "Tell me about public school."

"Public school?" Maya asked, picking up her espresso.

"Yea. I went to an all-girls school so I don't really know what a public school is like." Yumi explained. Maya took a sip of her drink, looking thoughtful. After a few moments, she set back down her cup and waved her hand in front of her. Yumi caught a flash of a different colour nail-polish than before. This time was a clear, glossy sheen.

"I imagine it wasn't all that much different." Maya finally said. "It was co-ed as opposed to all-girls, and was likely not as high-standing as Lillian is. But I studied hard and was able to come to Tokyo to study art."

"That… makes sense, I guess." Yumi said agreeably. Honestly, what more would she expect? A school was a school. In the grand scheme of things, Lillian wouldn't be all that much different than a public school with both boys and girls attending. There were still classes. There were still clubs. There was still romance… though in Lillian the romance was more  _subtle_ and… well…  _rarer_  due to the presence of a single gender, but still, it was there. "What about university?"

Maya smiled again. "I attended Tokyo University of the Arts." She said proudly. "I majored in art with a minor in early childhood education."

That last bit caught Yumi's attention. "Did Tokyo University of the Arts have an Early Childhood Education program?" She wondered aloud, cocking her head to the side. She was sure they only had art and music departments.

Maya laughed and shook her head. "'Nah; I had to do a correspondence program with another university…" Suddenly, what Yumi said must have hit Maya. "Did… you go to Geidai, too, Yumi-san?"

The brown-haired woman nodded, turning to look out of the snow-frosted window to her left. "Yea. I was in the architecture and planning department." She said softly. Tokyo University of the Arts, commonly shortened to Geidai, was one of the oldest (if not the oldest) art schools in Japan. It was famous for its art and music disciplines. It hadn't been Yumi's first choice, but seeing as Lillian University was out of the question, her father and friends all implored her to go for the best school she could. Looking back, it was a sheer luck (or clever foresight) that she had taken all her entrance exams before the end of her final school year. Thanks to the tutoring of Touko and Sachiko Ogasawara (pre-break up), Yumi had passed with flying colors and didn't have much of a problem choosing a second university after Lillian.

"Wow!" The older woman breathed. "I can't believe it—I was in the oil painting department! It's a shame we didn't ever meet…"

"Mmm." Yumi shrugged noncommittally and nodded in slight agreement. It would have been, Yumi's slightly self-destructive side mused, to see how she would have reacted to meet Maya during her university years. She may have gone completely insane, truthfully. "And now you're a writer." She said, steering the conversation back towards the older woman.

Maya nodded and flicked a few strands of hair behind her ear. "Yes. Did I tell you before that I write children's books?"

"You did. Is that why you minored in Early Childhood Education?" Yumi asked. It would make sense, after all, if she wanted to write children's books.

"That's it exactly. I always loved to read books for children... look at the pictures... read the cute stories..." Her eyes took on a soft, wistful expression; like she was looking at something far away. "Fairy tales and folk stories... magic and hope... impossible and fantastic things... true love and fate... I always loved stuff like that." She grinned and put her hand to her cheek. "It sounds silly coming from a grown woman, doesn't it?"

Yumi shook her head, matching the woman's smile. "Not at all." She said. "I think the world needs a little more hope and magic."  _And true love..._  she added silently. She laughed inwardly at her own precociousness. While it didn't sound silly coming from someone else... Yumi was pretty sure it would it if came from her own lips. Or maybe that was because she was biased against the idea of 'true love'. Oh well- not that it mattered.

"I think so, too." Maya agreed. "Anyway, I decided at a young age that's what I wanted to do, and made an early target of Geidai. When I graduated, I landed an internship at my current publishing company. After a lot of pushing- and a few choice instances of helping some higher-up save face-" she added with another one of her winks. "I was offered a contract to become published."

"Thank sounds great." Yumi said honestly. "I would love to read your stories sometime." She was actually quite interested to see how this woman, even if she looked just like a certain Ogasawara heiress, wrote stories. Would they be fanciful? Romantic? Serious and deep? Humorous and random? Yumi had no idea.

"Remind me next time and I'll bring a copy as a gift for you." Maya said.

Yumi sputtered her tea, barely able to put the cup down before spilling. "No! No no no no... you have to let me buy your work." She said defensively. "I can't let you simply give them to me."

Maya sent a deadpan look at Yumi, completely catching the younger woman off guard. She had never seen that look on that face before, and it was both equal parts unsettling and incredibly funny. "I have a cardboard box full of copies at home, Yumi-san." She said tonelessly. "Trust me. You would be doing me a bigger favor by taking them off my hands than paying me for them."

Yumi raised an eyebrow and cocked her head. While the main thought running through her head was that Maya could benefit by having copies gone while at the same time gaining a profit... she chose not to risk an argument about face over it. Reluctantly, she nodded. "Alright then... Thank you very much."

"Not a problem!" The dark-haired woman chirped happily. "I'm happy to help out a fellow artist."

"I'm hardly an artist." Yumi snorted.

"But you have an art degree." Maya pointed out. "And you work as an architectural designer, correct?"

"Hn." Yumi mumbled. Though it was only a half-answer, Maya took it at face value.

"I would consider you an artist, then." She concluded.

Yumi sighed lightly and ate another piece of cake. "I guess. I never really thought about it. I never thought about what I was going to be or do. I just... am." The look on Maya's face told Yumi the older woman didn't quite understand where Yumi was coming from. "Ah... never mind. It's nothing."

Maya was quiet for a few moments, taking a few thoughtful sips from her cup. After a while, she spoke. "Well, a lot of us move forward without having a destination in mind. It's part of being our own person, right?" Yumi looked at Maya, locking her brown eyes on the other's dark blue ones. "I mean, I think that's one of the best things about being alive. Not knowing what's going to happen next, what you're going to be doing tomorrow... or the next day... or next year. Who you are going to know, what kind of relationship you will have... it's all exciting." Her eyes seemed to glitter as she winked at Yumi again. "As the saying goes: It's all part of the great adventure."

Yumi blinked a couple times, surprised at the insight the woman had. It wasn't anywhere on par with Touko's usual (and sometimes insistent) advice... but it was right up there. Life an adventure. Not knowing what will happen and looking forward to things and experiences. It was certainly a new way to look at things. The young architect sighed and shook her head, smiling softly. "Who said that?" She asked. She had never heard that particular saying before, but it sounded quite contemporary.

Maya stuck her tongue out playfully. "I did, Yumi-san. I did."

Yumi laughed; a loud, bright laugh that reached her ears and rang out through the entire room. "You, Maya Sagara-san..." She said, grinning widely at the woman in front of her. "Are a very interesting person."

Maya stuck the final piece of her cake onto her fork and held it up to her eyes. She smiled at Yumi and lowered her head in a very slight bow. "You are too, Yumi Fukuzawa-san. You are too." With that, she popped the last piece of cake into her mouth.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 5**

Yumi stopped humming to herself as she slid another forkful of pasta into her mouth, only taking her eyes off the television long enough to make sure she didn't miss her mouth in favour or her cheek. Tomato sauce on the face wasn't very good for the skin, after all. When her lips closed, she continued to hum as she chewed the spiral-shaped pieces of cooked flour and egg. Pasta was one of her favourite dishes, and she couldn't quite help being in a good mood as she munched away on her meal and watched a game show.

She had never seen this particular game show before, but it seemed entertaining enough to warrant her attention for a while. As she watched the contestants on screen perform tricks and talents, she speared another forkful and popped it into her mouth.

She was just reaching for her glass of juice when her mobile phone, set just beside the glass, buzzed twice. Yumi twitched her lips up to a smile and shifted her hand from grabbing her glass to picking up the phone. Setting her fork into her bowl of pasta on her lap, she leaned back against her couch and opened the new message.

_Pasta? That's amazing! I can't even manage cooking eggs… Maybe you can give me some tips?_

_Anyway, I'll let you enjoy your evening (and your pasta). Maybe we can meet up again sometime? It was interesting chatting with you— you are a very friendly person. I know I'm not very good company… but, if you'd like to meet again, let me know!_

_Have a lovely evening,_

_Maya_

Yumi smiled in spite of herself as she read the message. Right after getting home three hours ago (after meeting with Maya, Yumi had walked around a bit and gone shopping for groceries), she received a greeting from Maya. It was essentially a message of pleasantry, saying that Maya had a good time with Yumi that day. That had earned a reply from Yumi, and then another message from Maya… then another reply from Yumi…

Soon the two women were having a full-blown message conversation, talking about anything interesting they could come up with, up until now. Being supper time, Maya apparently found it prudent to cease their silent conversation.

Yumi stuffed another forkful of pasta into her mouth and grasped her phone with both hands, typing out a reply.

_Sure—cooking is one of my favorite hobbies. Ask anything; if I don't know, I can find it out fairly easily. I have good sources!_

_I had a good time today, too. I have some free time next week. If we both have time, I think we could meet up again for some coffee or tea._

_Thanks a lot for talking with me. You have a good night, too._

_Yumi._

Yumi sent her reply and tossed her phone beside her leg, one again picking up her bowl of pasta and her fork.

Honestly, Yumi's meeting with Maya Sagara  _had_  been fun, if she were completely honest with herself. She had been extremely nervous before the older woman arrived. But now that it was over, she didn't even know why she had been so unsettled. The woman was nice, intelligent, funny, and attractive. The fact that she looked like… well…  _Sachiko_ was just something Yumi would have to overlook. If Yumi wanted to see her again, that was.

Still, though… even after separating from Maya, Yumi didn't know why she found the dark-haired woman so interesting. No, perhaps 'interesting' wasn't the right word. Even before seeing her again, Yumi was confused as to why she wanted to see her again. It was why she accepted the woman's invitation to go out… why she was so nervous waiting for her… why she still had that uncomfortable feeling in the pit of her stomach waiting for Maya's reply to her message. Just what was it that was making Yumi feel so… weird?

What was it?

Yumi's musing was interrupted again by her phone. She dropped her fork back into her bowl to snatch the device from beside her leg and flicked open the latest message. As she read it, she felt her ears prickle lightly.

_I look forward to it!_

_Good night!_

_Maya_

_(By the way— your outfit today was really cute!)_

Yumi re-read the message, the heat around her ears travelling down to her cheeks.

Holy crap.

She owed Shimako… big time.

Maybe Yumi could design a house for her?

0 – 0 – 0

_End of chapter 6_


	7. Chapter 7

**The Princess and the Sparrow**

_Chapter 7_

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 1**

Yumi's doorbell chimed, pulling her attention away from her television (and a particular uninteresting comedy show) and towards door into the hallway.

Crap. Was it that time already?

Clicking her tongue in mild annoyance, Yumi picked up her television's remote control and powered the device off. The screen flickered once and then turned to black, the sound shutting down with it. For a few moments she sat on her couch, having an internal debate about actually getting up to answer the door. Her visitor, if it was who she suspected, had a spare key. So why was he even bothering to ring the bell?

He likely just wanted to irritate Yumi by making her get up to answer the door. Dumb baka-face.

The doorbell rang again, and Yumi got up off the couch with a grunt. "I'm coming!" She called out, not really caring if the person outside her front door could hear or not. It seemed like the right thing to say, anyway. She entered the hallway and stepped down into the entryway, not bothering to slide into her outdoor slippers. She opened the door, and was met with the all-too-similar face of her own brother.

"Hey!" Yuuki said, grinning. He held up a small plastic bag with one hand. Whatever was inside of it sent small tendrils of steam up through the top into the crisp January air. "I bought taiyaki!"

Yumi snorted a laugh and her neutral expression was ruined with a matching grin to her brother's. Yuuki held the bag of taiyaki out, and Yumi accepted the treat with both hands. "In that case, you are allowed inside." She said, moving to the side to let her brother pass.

"Wa! Thanks, Nee-chan!" The man said happily and slipped past Yumi. The woman shut the door behind him ("Did he just call me 'Nee-chan'?") and turned to see him slipping off his jacket and boots. "It's  _cold_  out there today!" He declared, rubbing his arms up and down his body.

Yumi tapped a pair of indoor slippers with her toes, indicating that her brother should use them. He nodded gratefully and slipped the dark red slippers on over his socks. "You didn't drive here?" Yumi asked.

"Oh, I did. But that still doesn't stop it from being cold. I had the heat on full-blast and I was still freezing!"

"That's because you're cold-blooded." Yumi said decidedly. "I have been saying it for years."

"Oh, har har." Yuuki replied sarcastically. "Can I have some tea or something with the taiyaki?" He stepped up into the hallway and picked up his suitcase from the floor beside his coat, which he had hung up on the coat rack. Yumi eyed the suitcase warily, and then turned her attention back to her brother.

"You mean this yummy, flaky, delicious treat is not all for your beautiful sister?" Yuuki didn't reply, he just threw back his head and laughed, putting his whole body into the action. After a solid thirty seconds of laughing, he finally stopped and continued into the kitchen, not saying a word. Yumi stared after him for a few moments, and then followed, shaking her head tiredly. Sometimes, her brother was just too much.

Yumi entered the kitchen to find Yuuki already seated at the island in the middle of the room, his suitcase out in front of him and opened. He was rummaging through a few different sheets of paper— contract details, Yumi assumed. "Make yourself at home." She said evenly. She didn't even bother to muster up the sarcasm; her brother could supply it on his own.

"Don't I always?" He said, shooting Yumi a sardonic smile. His sister returned it and walked over to the counter, picking up the electric kettle and filling it with water.

"Of course you do. What kind of tea do you want?"

"Whatever you have is fine." Yuuki said with a wave of his hand. He returned to going through the papers on the table whilst Yumi went about preparing tea. Choosing a particular interesting variant of a green tea she found a few weeks ago, Yumi poured the hot water into her china teapot and placed a mug in front of her brother, pouring a generous amount of the liquid into his cup. Yumi poured a cup for herself, as well, and reached into the plastic bag Yuuki had brought in with him. Her fingers wrapped around the still-warm, form of a taiyaki. Smiling, she withdrew the snack and took a large bite. She chewed-

"Good?" Her brother eyed her from his seat, still smiling.

"It was... until you asked." Yumi snapped, puffing out her cheeks. Her favorite was the red bean variant of taiyaki, and her brother had not disappointed. Yuuki laughed again and picked out the other pastry, taking a large bite.

"Remember when you and I used to go out to the park as kids, and run around eating taiyaki?" He asked, nodding appreciatively as he chewed. Yumi shrugged.

"I remember on more than one occasion you dropping yours." She said, half-smiling. "And you cried until I gave you half of mine."

Yuuki blinked and tapped his chin with a corner of his taiyaki. "Was that how it went?" He shrugged. "If you say so." Reaching down to his mug, he took a swig. He cringed at the scalding tea, but still forced down the mouthful.

"Yea. It's hot." Yumi said offhandedly. She probably should have warned him. Oh well. She watched as her brother set his mug back down and slid over a stack of papers, bound by a silvery clip at the upper-left corner.

"Thanks. Anyway, here are the details for the Onoga contract." Yuuki said, his tone turning somewhat serious. "I met with Onoga-san, his lawyer, and his planning supervisor yesterday to go over the particulars; wants for the project on his end, time constraints, renumeration, and things like that." He got out of his chair and moved closer to Yumi, who leaned forward to cast an uninterested eye over the text printed out on the contract. "Considering the business Onoga-san runs and his usual work-ethic, I think we got off really well with most of this."

"How do you mean?" Yumi asked, taking a sip from her mug.

"I mean, we got quite a lot of leeway to work on the first draft, and an even longer amount of time for the projected end date." Yuuki tapped the first page, indicating that Yumi should turn to the next. She flipped the first sheet over. "Not only that, but look at the compensation he's giving us." Yumi did, and when she noticed the figures her stomach flipped uncomfortably. Surely there was a mistake.

"T-that much?" She asked, her mouth suddenly dry. She took another drink of tea, wetting her lips as she swallowed.

"Yea, that much." Yuuki replied seriously. "I actually tried to ask for less _\- Less_ , Yumi! But Onoga-san said he wouldn't dream of paying us less than that."

Yumi sat back, her face blank. What the hell was the man playing at, giving them that much? It was almost  _four times_  more than Yumi and Yuuki should be getting paid for a project this length- nearly unheard of in the architectural design business. Sure they were working for a privately funded side-project to Daisuke Onoga by designing his summer house, and therefore didn't need to go through all the hoops of his company, but still...

There had to be some sort of mistake.

"Did he say why?" Yumi asked numbly, still staring at the contract. She felt Yuuki shift uncomfortably beside her.

"Yea. He did." He said, his tone getting softer.

"Why?"

"You're not going to like it." Yuuki warned. He placed his hands under his chin and leaned forward, turning his face to look at his sister. Yumi grimaced, already guessing the answer. Shit. Why was it always like that? No matter how hard she tried to be her own person, no matter how hard she worked and desperately she wished for everyone to treat her as Yumi Fukuzawa... there was always someone wanting to drag her back down to couple her together with the past.

"Just tell me." Yumi sighed, holding her face in her hands. "Don't sugar-coat it."

There was a few moments of silence, during which Yumi heard her brother finish off his taiyaki and take another drink of still-hot tea. Finally, he sighed. "It's because of your relationship with the Ogasawara family, Yumi."

Yumi snorted in her hands. "Of course is it." She said dejectedly. "It had to be that."

"Well, Onoga-san first contacted me through their Ogasawara contacts, so I can't say I'm surprised." Yuuki's tone was soft. He was testing the waters; he didn't want to say anything that was upset his sister, obviously. "So I guess he wants to give us a large compensation, as well as time frame, in hopes of giving himself face with the Ogasawara Group."

"Did you explain that we don't work with them in any way?" Yumi asked.

"I did. But you know how business works..." Yuuki held out two hands, and tried to hold them together in an imitation of a handshake. It didn't work very well. "Relations are everything here. Who you know, and who you have contact with has a huge affect on your business circles. We - _you_ \- are closely tied to the Ogasawaras... whether you like it or not. And that opens up a very large business circle."

Yumi slammed her hands on the counter, causing her brother to jump. "But I haven't even spoken to anyone from that family for years!" She exclaimed.

Her brother took a long, steady breath, and then relaxed his shoulders. "It doesn't matter, Yumi. With a family like that, and your relationship with them... that's how it is." He tapped the contract with his index finger. "We got this contract because of that."

"So let me get this straight..." Yumi said after a few long moments, a slight edge to her voice. "The only reason Onoga-san wants to work with Fukuzawa Architecture is so he can gain face with the Ogasawara Group?" Yuuki seemed to consider that for a few moments, and then his eyes widened.

"Yumi, don't even think about it." He said seriously. "We can't afford to back out now. It would be-"

"I wasn't talking about that..." Yumi groaned, leaning on the counter. Her arms crossed, propping up her head above the cold countertop. "Baka." She added. "Like I said... I wouldn't say 'no' to a job for a stupid reason like that. Honestly, Yuuki- I thought you knew me better than that." The pair went silent for a while. Yumi stared towards her kitchen window, which had been covered with a thick layer of fog from the water she boiled in front of it. Yuuki kept sipping at his tea, absently leafing through the contract as he did.

"That reminds me..." Yumi heard her brother say thoughtfully. "You and I haven't really done anything together for a while."

"So?"

"Well, I thought it would be nice if we can do something together."

Yumi sighed and rolled her head around, getting a good look at Yuuki. His brown eyes were staring down into his tea, but occasionally flickered up to meet her own. His face was somber, almost apologetic. "Like what?" She asked. This was obviously his way of apologizing, so she may as well take the bait.

The other shrugged. "I dunno." He said honestly. "Just... something."

"Like getting more taiyaki and running around in the park?" Yumi said, smiling slightly. Her brother's face broke into a cheery grin.

"Yea, that actually sounds kind of cool."

"And you can drop yours like an idiot." Yumi continued.

Yuuki laughed. "And you can give me half of yours!"

"You'll have to pry it from my cold, dead fingers, first." Yumi shot back, matching her brother's smile. The two laughed at that, and relaxed. "Yea," The Fukuzawa sister said softly. "That sounds like fun actually." Her brother nodded and, sitting up straight, Yumi scanned her eyes over the contract again. "Look, Yuuki, I'm honestly not interested in the details of the contract or the future meetings with Onoga-san. Would you mind taking care of that?"

Yuuki sighed, a little loudly, and reached for the contract. "I figured you would say that, actually. That's why I took the liberty of separating all the specifics regarding the project itself-" He withdrew a separate, thinner, stack of paper from his briefcase and handed it to Yumi. "And printed them up for you. In there you will find Onoga-san's specific qualifications for his summer house, as well as dimensions of the plot."

Yumi took the papers, giving her brother a smile. "See? Was that so hard?" She asked sweetly.

"Right." Yuuki snorted. "Though there is the little thing of periodic meetings with Onoga-san do go over drafts with him..."

Yumi leveled her eyes at her brother. "I would very much prefer not to attend those, if at all possible."

"Yumi, you are the designer, not me." Yuuki reasoned. "I can meet with him, yes, but the whole reason we got the contract at all is because of you. If you refuse to meet with him to present your work, even on occasion, then..." He waved his hand. "Well, it looks bad." He shot a sideways glance at Yumi, a small smirk sliding across his lips. "Besides... I think he was quite taken with you."

"What." Yumi deadpanned. Eww… gross.

"Well, he kept asking about you yesterday during the meeting." Yuuki tried to keep his grin under control, but failed miserably. "I told him you were ill, so you couldn't make the meeting... and he went on and on about you- asking if you were being properly taken care of... if you needed a chauffeur to the hospital... that he should or shouldn't send you a 'get well gift'... it was kind of sweet, actually."

Yumi shuddered. "Ugh. No thanks." She mumbled. "Aside from being way too old, well... just  _no_."

Yuuki leaned over to nudge his sister lightly in the side. "Aww, come on. It could be really good for business." Yumi sent a glare his way, and he immediately sat back in his seat, both hands on his mug. "Alright... too far. Gotcha."

"Good boy." Yumi said, nodding. "Seriously, though, I want to avoid as many meetings as possible during this project. Its business, I understand that... but..." She pushed her now-empty mug away from her. "I just can't."

Yumi could feel her brother's eyes on her for a while. She knew he could understand what she meant, even though it sounded vague to her own ears. She knew he would get it. He always did, in the end. Eventually, the man sighed and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Alright, Yumi. I promise I'll see what I can do."

"Thanks." Yumi replied, putting her hand on his.

A few quiet moments later, the two siblings breathed a collective sigh of relief and began to clear things up in the kitchen. Yumi, the tea and remains of taiyaki. Yuuki, the contract (the parts that weren't Yumi's) and his briefcase. He snapped the clasp shut and cleared his throat. "Well, I'll get out of your way, then." He said. "Keep what I said about doing something together in mind. I was serious about running through the park with takoyaki."

"And I was serious about not sharing mine with you." Yumi said archly.

"It'll be fun." Yuuki agreed. He gestured to the stack of papers left on the counter. "You gonna go through that later?"

Yumi nodded, looking tiredly at the papers. "Yea. I'll start on it tonight and see what I can come up with for an initial draft. I'll give you a call about it when I churn something out."

"Cool." Her brother said, nodding. He made his way to entryway and slipped his outdoor shoes on, shrugging on his coat after. He opened the door and, before leaving, turned his attention back to Yumi, who was seeing him off from the hallway. He smiled at the brown-haired woman. "And thanks, Nee-chan." He said, and left.

Yumi rolled her eyes at the front door. Just what was with the whole 'Nee-chan' thing today, anyway?

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 2**

From out of the soundless, cloudy fog of Yumi's dream, came a familiar chirping sound. It started low, almost too low to hear. But the longer it continued, the more Yumi was drawn to the sound until it seemed to shake her whole body with vibrations. Eventually, her consciousness surfaced and she realized that the sound was her phone, vibrating on her bedside table and emitting a soft ringtone. The fact that she had been blissfully asleep caused the ringing to seem louder than it actually was. Still though, Yumi sluggishly thought as she peered one eye open to see the glow of light that permeated her room, she believed that any noise sounded loud if you were asleep.

She reached out and grabbed her phone from the table. Not bothering to check the caller ID, she fumbled with the answer toggle and pressed the device to her ear.

"Uh." She mumbled, still half-asleep.

"Good morning, Yumi-chan!" A clipped, feminine found sounded into her ear. There were a few short moments of pause, in which Yumi didn't say anything. Somewhere in her thoughts, it occurred to her that only a few women called her 'Yumi-chan'. And only one would do it that loudly.

"Sei...sama?" She asked slowly, half into the phone and half into her pillow.

The voice laughed. "Yes, indeed. How are you doing?"

Yumi was too sleepy to really muster up any sarcasm, and answered truthfully. "Uh- sleepy." She said. "What time is it?"

"Six-thirty." Sei replied, as it were the most natural thing in the world. "Were you asleep?"

"Nn..." Yumi grunted. "I still am. What do you want?" Screw being polite. Politeness started at seven.

Sei chuckled a little, though over the phone it sounded more like a low-pitched mumble. "Actually, it's funny you should ask. There's kind of a whole story to go along with this, but the end result is I kind of need somewhere to hang for the day. Can you hook a girl up?"

Yumi sighed and rolled over, adjusting her phone to her other ear in the process. "Y-yea... sure." She said, yawning. Honestly, it wasn't the weirdest thing Sei had ever asked of Yumi. "I guess so. When will you get here?"

"About five minutes ago."

Yumi squinted her already-shut eyes, her eyebrows furrowed with the action. "Wha-?" She asked.

"I said I'm right outside your door." Sei explained. "Can you open up? It's kinda cold outside, you know?"

Yumi was up out of her bed in an instant. She sprinted to her bedroom door and wrenched it open, blasting into her hallway. She slipped once she was outside her bedroom and fell on her carpet, cursing loudly as she landed on her chest. She took a moment to push herself upright and catch her breath, and then hobbled the rest of the way to the front door and opened it.

Sure enough, Sei Satou was standing there in front of her house, looking to all the world like a child caught doing something intentionally naughty. She wore a white jacket, white earmuffs, and had a beige scarf wrapped around her neck. Her sand-colored kakis and boots were frosty with snow (it had apparently snowed lightly during the night). Yumi blinked rapidly as she took in the older woman. From the frazzled, wind-chilled visage of her and the rosy color of her cheeks, she looked like she had either been out all night... or at least had a very difficult time getting to Yumi's house this early in the morning. The buses hadn't started yet, after all.

The former white rose reached up and scratched behind her head with her hand, grinning embarrassingly. "Hey there, Yumi-chan..." She chuckled. "Nice to see you."

Yumi, finally realizing the awkwardness of the situation, narrowed her eyes towards Sei. "What in God's name are you doing here at six in the morning?"

"Six-thirty, actually." Sei said, holding up a finger as if she was pointing out a mistake on the younger woman's part.

Yumi wasn't amused. She narrowed her eyes even further and crossed her arms over her chest, mostly to keep herself warm (she was only clad in a long T-shirt and underwear), but also to make herself seem more intimidating. If she could even look intimidating at all in front of Sei Satou.

Neither worked. Oh well, it was worth a try anyway.

"I reiterate: what are you doing here at the crack of dawn?" Yumi demanded. Though, realistically speaking, she shouldn't have been surprised at the older girl. Sei was prone to oddities that skittered on the edge of what Yumi and the others would consider 'appropriate' from time to time. Yumi remembered one instance in particular getting a call from the woman at three in the morning, asking to come take her home from a bar in the entertainment district of Tokyo. Never mind the fact that the woman apparently forgot that Yumi didn't have a car. After angrily hanging up on the woman, Yumi ended up feeling guilty enough to actually take a taxi to get a very inebriated Sei from a rather expensive-looking club, take her back to the architect's own home, and was able to put her 'guest' to a comfortable sleep in her extra bedroom. Sei awoke the next morning fresh as a daisy, and wholly embarrassed at putting Yumi out as she had.

Sei didn't look drunk now, Yumi thought as she stood there glaring at her friend, but she wasn't about to place any bets on that.

"As I said," Sei shrugged. "I kinda need a place to crash for the day."

Yumi cocked an eyebrow. "For the day? As in… the day?"

"As in 'the day'." Sei nodded, reaching up to wrap her arms around her body. Her breath was coming out in thick puffs of cloudy steam as she exhaled each breath. Yumi herself shivered slightly, her skin forming goose bumps under her nightshirt. "I'll be out of your hair by the evening. Cool?"

Yumi sighed and stepped back inside, holding the door open for the blond-haired woman. "Fine." She said, defeated. She could never say 'no' to Sei. "You can hang around today."

"Great! Thanks, Yumi-chan!" Sei breathed a sigh of relief and stepped past Yumi into the warmth of the entryway. Yumi shut the door after the older woman and paused, her hand still on the doorknob. Perhaps she should have asked this question before she invited her in but…

"Sei-sama… you're not drunk, are you?"

Her question was met with a laugh. "No, but I am hungry!"

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 3**

"Phew! That was delicious! Thank you, Yumi-chan!" Sei heaved a heavy, satisfied sigh and lay back against the couch, patting her stomach. She slid the now-licked-clean plate that ten minutes ago held eggs, toast and bacon to the coffee table beside her. "You are a much better cook than my mother ever was."

Yumi grunted at the compliment, not taking her eyes off the measurements she was making. Still slightly miffed at the woman all but barging into her home and politely demanding Yumi cook her breakfast, and a western one at that (she was lucky the architect even  _stocked_  bacon!), Yumi refused to look at Sei. She instead hunched closer to her drafting table, running her trained eyes over the sketch she had drawn up the previous evening. The project requirements had been easy to understand, and it had taken Yumi only thirty minutes to come up with a bare-boned idea for her initial concept. It was a personal record for her, but she knew that it was the first step in a very, very long road. She had a long way to go before the end.

Even so, Yumi thought as she erased a small mistake she spotted in the plot-lines, it was a good start. If she continued to build off the idea she had in her mind, then she may be able to have an initial concept to hand off to Yuuki within—

"Aren't you going to eat anything?" Sei asked from right beside Yumi's ear.

"Gah!" Yumi started and sat back, her heart rate taking a soaring leap as she stared into a pair of bright, grey eyes. The eyes regarded her for a moment, and then slanted in humor.

"Sorry— didn't mean to scare ya." Sei snickered. Yes, she totally did. Yumi glared at her, but the older woman didn't seem to notice. "Aren't you going to eat anything?" She asked again.

Yumi shook her head. "Not right now. I'll eat in a bit." A disapproving look washed over Sei's face, filling Yumi with a minute sense unease. She never knew what the older woman would do when she had that look in her eye. It would be better to stay in her good graces by meeting in the middle. Swallowing, Yumi tried to back up. "I mean, I'll eat a large lunch. I usually snack when I'm working, anyway."

Sei kept her stare going strong for a few moments, and then shrugged. "Alright." She said, making her way back to the couch. Yumi and Sei were in the younger woman's office at the moment. After cooking breakfast for Sei, Yumi brought her into her home office under the pretense of 'If you insist on staying here for the day, I'm going to continue working as thought are aren't here'. Sei agreed, but only if she could watch her work. Not coming up with any reason to refuse, Yumi reluctantly acquiesced. It wasn't as though this would be the first time Yumi worked while being watched by someone. On more than one occasion Touko had visited while Yumi worked, and quietly sat across the room as the architect worked. Yumi often wondered if the younger woman ever became bored watching her work but, surprisingly, Touko denied ever being bored. Apparently watching the architect work was interesting in its own way. Though… Yumi could never figure out why.

"Mind if I use your computer?" Sei asked, pointing to the desktop on the opposite wall to Yumi's drafting table.

"Go for it." Yumi said, only sparing a glance. "Password is 'Rosa Chinensis'."

Sei snorted airily. "Of course it is." She said, chuckling as she sat down in the computer chair. Yumi heard a 'click' and then the tell-tale whir of her PC's cooling fan as it started its booting process. She only listened until Sei input the Windows login password, and then satisfied that the older woman could get by on her own, focused on her work again.

Ten minutes hadn't passed before Yumi was interrupted again.

"So how are things?" Sei asked from behind her. Yumi sighed softly and craned her neck around to look at the older woman. The former white rose had opened the internet browser, and was clicking on seemingly random links, reading their contents. She hadn't turned back to look at Yumi, but was still choosing to converse with her. Turning back to her drawing, Yumi decided to humor the other a bit.

"Things are going aright, I guess." She supplied shortly, reaching for her straightedge below the table. "I got a new contract to work on... I finished up the old one just after New Years…" She shrugged. "Yea, it's going alright."

"Cool, cool." Came the reply. There was a pause, then— "And… non-work-related?" Sei queried. "How's that going?"

Yumi arched an eyebrow as she ran her pencil along the straightedge. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know… just curious as to how you're  _really_  doing recently." The woman's voice sounded nonchalant, but Yumi knew from experience that her goals were anything but. She was fishing for something. It was just a matter of time before Sei actually went for the throat.

Oh well, might as well take the bait.

"Can you be more specific?" Yumi asked.

The older girl was quiet for a few moments, and then Yumi heard the sound of the computer chair swiveling around to face her. "Well, I heard from a little bird that someone had a date the other day."

 _Scratch!_ Yumi's pencil tore a ripped a sizable tear in the middle of her drawing. Yumi backed her arm away and gaped, wide-eyed, at her error. She inhaled sharply. "Shit." There went at least forty minutes of work down the drain. Wonderful. She swiveled her own chair around and glared venomously at the older woman, who returned her look with a humored one of her own.

" _Bingo."_ Sei remarked in English, winking at Yumi.

" _Fuck bingo and fuck you too._ " Yumi said acidly, in English as well. Unfortunately, the taunt only served to make Sei laugh. Yumi felt her cheeks color and she turned back to her ruined draft.

"Aw, come on, Yumi-chan!" Sei said, her chair creaking as she leaned back in it. "It's alright! I just wanna know about it. Come on, tell me: how did it go?"

Yumi began to remove the ruined sheet of drafting paper from her table, pursing her lips tightly together. "Did Shimako-san tell you?" She managed to bite out. If so, she was going to have to give the other woman a serious piece of her mind about not telling people what Yumi had considered  _a secret between friends_.

"Actually, no she didn't." Sei said. "At least, not technically."

"What does that mean?" Yumi asked, crumpling her discarded paper in her hands before tossing it in the rubbish bin beside her table. "'Not technically?'"

Sei straightened up in her chair. "It means, no she really didn't tell me. I... inferred." She said slowly, a small glint in her eye. Yumi raised an eyebrow as her glare softened somewhat. She was never very good at staying angry at anyone. But that didn't mean she wasn't mad anymore- she was still plenty angry! Baka-Sei-sama.

At Yumi's silence, Sei chose to elaborate. "She said that you and she went shopping the other day. You wanted some new clothes." She shrugged. "I took that to mean that you had a date."

Now Yumi's glare all but disappeared, to be replaced by confusion. "You gathered all that from just me wanted to get some new clothes?" If that was true, then Shimako was off the hook. Probably.

Sei leaned forward, the glint in her eye sparkling. "You never buy new clothes, Yumi-chan. There had to be a damn good reason for that to change."

"And if my wardrobe just needed to be updated?" Yumi sniffed.

The other scoffed. "During the middle of the week? Not likely. You would be more likely to just borrow some of Touko's clothes again. Either hers or mine." She blinked. "By the way... you still have my pants."

"Oh..." Yumi said, suddenly remembering. "Yea, right. You can take them with you when you leave." She leveled a stare at the older woman. "You  _are_  leaving before dinner, right?"

Sei sighed and leaned back in her chair. "Yea, I guess so. I just had to get out of the house for the day."

"What's the problem?" Yumi asked, only slightly concerned to be honest. "Why'd you have to get out of the house?" Sei peered at Yumi out of the corner of her eye, and suddenly grinned.

"Alright Yumi-chan, how about this:" She said. "I'll tell you whats up with my romantic life if you tell me about yours. Deal?"

Yumi stared speculatively at the older woman sitting across from her. She was sitting backwards on the chair now, both of her legs dragging across the carpet restlessly. Her face was a mask of humor and expectation. It was as if she was playing a children's game with Yumi. A game where she was sure she would win. Yumi sighed, fully accepting an early defeat, and replaced her pencil on the tray underneath her drafting table. "Deal." She said tiredly. She may as well get it over with.

"Excellent." Sei enthused, forcing the chair forward excitedly. "So, you first. What's her name?"

Yumi cocked her hear to the side. "What makes you think it's a girl?"

"Please." The blonde-haired woman snorted. And that was it. It was only after a few moments, and after Yumi was sure Sei wasn't going to continue, that she answered.

"Her name is Maya Sagara." She said with a sigh.

Sei nodded and leaned back a little. "My problem isn't actually a problem, really. Karina is just acting a little..." She pursed her lips, thinking. "Negative."

"Negative." Yumi repeated, as if trying the word out. That was vague.

"Where did you meet this 'Maya-chan'?" Sei asked. It was her turn.

"Uh..." Yumi blinked, only slightly thrown off by the use of the '-chan' honorific with Maya's name. It just sounded... odd.

_Sachiko-chan..._

Yumi shuddered at the sudden thought that popped in her mind. She shook off the feeling and squared her shoulders. "We met at a small cafe her and I both frequent." Sei nodded, her eyes closed. Yumi chose that moment to continue their little game. "What did you mean by Karina-sama is being 'negative'?"

Sei shrugged. "Not quite sure, actually. Usually she is fine. But some times she just blows up at small things I do or say. I say negative because she hasn't said anything 'positive' recently. As in, nothing good."

"Hmm." Yumi mused. That was odd; from the previous times she met Sei's partner, Karina Nakigahara, she got the impression that the woman was extremely easygoing and polite to a fault.

"Yea. Hmm." Sei agreed. "So where is Maya-chan from? Not another Lillian graduate like the others, is she?"

Yumi's cheek twitched, and she shook her head fervently. "No way. Maya-san is from Kyoto; she went to public school there and attended the same university as I did here in Tokyo." She blinked a few times. Wait a minute... "Hey!" She said, and pointed a finger at the older woman. "That was two questions!" Sei had, and very sneakily at that, asked both where Maya was from  _and_ what school she went to! Smart...

"Hehe- your fault for falling for it, Yumi-chan!" Sei snickered. "Geidai, huh? Interesting..." She trailed off, stroking her chin thoughtfully.

"So. Negative." Yumi snapped her fingers, getting the blonde's attention again. "And you had to get out of the house because she's negative?"

The other shrugged. "When she's like that… and it's a rare occurrence… it's either leave for a while or get into an argument. I hate fighting, so I left for a while."

Yumi sighed and put her arms under her chin. "Oh, please don't let Karina-sama know you are at my house..." She really didn't need to be between a lover's spat. That was one thing she had no intention of having on her plate. Ever.

"Hmm? Oh, she already knows where I am." Sei said all-too-naturally. Yumi's head snapped up, her mouth hanging open. Before she could say anything, though, Sei was right there with her next question. "So, you have had at least one date. How did it go?"

Yumi sputtered for a few seconds, thrown completely off by the topic changes. Knowing that Sei would keep playing this little 'game' until she was satisfied, though, kept her from losing her cool. "It went really well." She said, gritting her teeth tightly together. "We drank tea and coffee, and ate cake together.  _Now what do you mean Karina-sama knows your here?!_ " She screamed the last sentence, almost standing up out of her chair.

Sei waved her hand in front of her, as if batting a particularly slow-moving fly out of the air. "It's fine, it's fine, Yumi-chan. There's no way she'll get angry at you. She trusts you, you know."

"Oh, lovely." Just how Karina, who was almost a stranger to Yumi, trusted her she had no idea. Maybe when Sei was with her, the blonde painted all her old classmates in a good light. If that was at all possible.

"Yea, so don't worry about it. Everything will be fine in a few hours, and I'll go back home and be out of your hair." Sei winked, a slightly flirtatious wink, at Yumi. "Unless you want me to stay and keep you company, that is."

"Ugh." Yumi supplied, letting her shoulders fall. "Pass."

"Oh you're no fun."

"Bite me." Yumi shot back, her lips twitching into a smirk.

"That an invitation?"

"No."

"Boo..." Sei sighed and leaned back. The two women were quiet for a few minutes, during which the only sounds were the whirr of the computer fan, the occasional squeak from a computer chair as someone shifted their position, or a car passed by the front of Yumi's house. The young architect was about to turn back to her table, when Sei cleared her throat. "So... is she nice?"

Yumi turned back to Sei, her eye brow raised. "What?" She asked.

Sei was looking up at the ceiling. "I asked if Maya-chan is nice." She repeated, not giving up her staring contest with the paint. Yumi watched the other for a long moment, and then nodded.

"Yes, she is kind." She said.

"Is she polite?" Came another question.

"Yes." Came another answer.

"Pretty?"

"In my opinion."

There was another pause; a long one this time. Eventually, Sei groaned and straightened up in her chair. She swiveled it back and faced the computer screen once again. "Well, that's good." She simply said, and clicked on another link.

"That's it?" Yumi asked after a few moments. That seemed kind of... like she was let off easy. "No more questions?"

Sei shrugged, still facing away from Yumi. "Not unless you want to tell me more, Yumi-chan." She said. Her tone was light, but at the same time carried a certain weight to it. "It's your life. You're a big girl. I think you are certainly capable of taking cafe of yourself." She stopped working the mouse with her hand and sighed. "I just want to know that you are being treated well... that's all. I don't need to know everything."

Yumi regarded the other's back for a while, watching as she clicked away at the internet browser. Seemingly invasive, a penchant of annoying people to get a rise out of them, and usually loud… that was Sei Satou. That was the Rosa Gigantea that graduated Lillian and was a close friend to Yumi. But that wasn't the woman sitting across from her now. The woman sitting across from her now was serious, speaking in a careful tone and, as a result, seemed to look a lot older from behind than she actually was.

Yumi blinked for a few times, and swallowed. This was Sei, the twenty-nine year old woman that knew Yumi since she was sixteen years old. This was the woman who looked out for Yumi and wanted the best for her. This was the woman, in all her oddities and rambunctious behavior, looked out for Yumi in her own way and was someone to rely on; in ways Yumi couldn't rely on any other person for.

She was the big sister that stayed behind.

"I... appreciate it, Sei-sama." Yumi finally said, turning slowly back to her table.

It was only a moment later that she heard Sei laugh again. "But, if and when you finally get laid, I expect to hear all the details."

"Bite me."

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 4**

It was eight forty-eight when Touko made her usual call that evening. Yumi had finished her shower twenty minutes before, giving her enough time to dry off, trim her bangs (she usually had Touko do it, but decided to go ahead and take care of them herself), and change into a long, bright pink T-shirt before her phone started to buzz on her dresser. She tossed her head-towel into her bathroom and skipped over to the annoying device, keying the answer toggle and pressing it to her ear.

"Hey Touko." She answered, sidling over to her bed and sitting down. "You know, I'm pretty sure the world will end before you are late for something."

Touko wasted no time with her defense. "I prefer to think of myself as 'punctual', Onee-sama." She said, her tone clipped but soft. "Good evening. How are you today?"

"Pretty good, actually." Yumi said, meaning it. "Today was... interesting, to say the least."

"Oh?" Touko asked. "That's good to hear. I was slightly worried when you were complaining last night about the new project."

Yumi huffed. "I wasn't  _complaining_ , Touko! I was... just expressing my feelings about the new work I have!" It was a lot, but it wasn't anything Yumi couldn't handle. She had designed the home she lived in, after all. That had taken almost a year of her post-university life, along with some assistance from her father, to complete. But, in the end, it had definitely been worth it. That's all this new project was; a summer house slightly larger (Onoga apparently wanted something simple- go figure) that her own home, and only two stories. She could handle that quite well given the time requirements laid out for her and Yuuki. Additionally, if worse ever came to worse, Yumi could always ask for help from her father. The man could still design with the best of them.

Even if he was getting up there in years. But Yumi would never say that to his face.

Touko laughed softly into Yumi's ear. "Of course you weren't, Onee-sama. I must have misunderstood your meaning."

"Damn right you did." Yumi said decidedly.

"So what about your day made it interesting?" Touko asked after a few moments. "I assume you didn't work all day long, or it wouldn't have been as interesting."

Yumi leaned back on her bed, laying down on her back. She sighed into the phone and stretched out her free arm. "Actually..." She said, yawning as she did. "I did. But I also had an early morning  _rendezvous_." She used the French word for 'meeting', expecting Touko to understand. Attending Lillian Academy, all students were exposed to a limited amount of French, after all. Words like  _Souer_ and _Bouton_ ,were commonplace, and therefore the students that attended Lillian would pick up other esoteric French words from time to time. Rendezvous was among the words Yumi had heard more often than not as a teenager. From the silence that hung over the phone like a stuffy curtain, Yumi assumed Touko had as well. She stifled a laugh and waited for the younger woman's reply.

"Uh..." Touko stammered, her tone confused and slow.

Yumi smiled triumphantly; she couldn't remember the last time she had caught Touko unawares. Oh, what she wouldn't give to see the woman's face right now! It must be so incredible.

"May I ask… with whom?" Touko finally asked. Her voice was quieter than usual, Yumi noticed. She wondered if she should continue this farce or stop it now. After a second of deliberation, she decided to let Touko dangle a little longer.

"A very tall, very beautiful blonde, actually..." Yumi said, smiling smugly. "She showed up at my door and I just couldn't say no."

Touko was silent on her end, and Yumi couldn't hold in her laugh anymore. It came out like a flood. He laughed so hard she nearly dropped her phone out of her hand. She rolled around on the bed, clutching her side with her free hand. After getting her fill, Yumi finally stopped laughing and listened for Touko's voice again.

"You still there?" She asked, grinning.

"I am." The younger woman said cooly. "It seems as though you had quite a fun day. I am sorry to have bothered you with my phone call."

Yumi laughed again. "Touko! It was only Sei-sama!" She explained, still smiling into the mouthpiece. "Sei-sama came to visit me in the morning. Kinda surprised me, too..."

"Oh." Touko said, her tone taking an immediate upwards turn. "In that case, you have my condolences."

"You're telling me." Yumi said with a laugh. "She showed up at my door at six-thirty— woke me up and everything. I was this close to kicking her out on the street and going back to sleep."

"That sounds like her." The younger woman said. Touko never attended Lillian the same time as Sei Satou, but was well enough acquainted with the other through Yumi, Shimako and Yoshino. The two women met on occasion (during such large get-togethers like the New Year's party a few weeks before) and were friendly with each other. Though Touko would tell Yumi privately that while she didn't much care for Sei, she did respect the author immensely. She had been Rosa Gigantea before Shimako, after all. "Why did you have her stay? It seems like six-thirty in the morning is somewhat unreasonable without good cause. Did she have one?"

Yumi thought about that. "Not really. She said she got into a spat with her partner and had to get out of the house for a while."

"So she turns to you?" Touko scoffed. "Wonderful."

"Hey!" Yumi gaped, mock-shocked. "I am very reliable! I think it's great how my friends can rely on  _me_  from time to time instead of me always relying on them!"

"It was likely because you are one of the few of us that owns her own house and wouldn't turn her away at that hour, Onee-sama." Yumi opened her mouth to argue, but closed it with a sigh. She was probably right. Still, though, it was nice to be relied upon. Even if it was by someone like Sei.

In fact...

"So what did you two do all day?" Yumi heard Touko ask. Yumi took a deep breath, thinking about where to start, but as she talked about her and Sei's day, her thoughts wandered elsewhere.

Sei Satou. Former Rosa Gigantea. A very odd woman to most people. But to Yumi, a very good friend. Yumi never saw her all that often; Sei had her own life and her own circle of acquaintances- same as Yumi. She couldn't honestly expect her to be around as she had when she was younger. The other former Roses, Youko and Eriko, as prime examples, were both gone to other cities. They had lives, families, jobs. Only Sei from that generation remained. Only Sei, former white rose and oftentimes sporadic writer, stayed close by to Yumi.

Why did she stay?

Did she stay for family? Yumi never met Sei's family so she really didn't know. For friends? Shimako and Sei were always really open about their relationship, never giving more than they should into their friendship. So it would surprise Yumi if Sei stayed for Shimako. Work? No… Sei, with her work history (freelance), would be able to land some sort of job almost anywhere. Her partner, Karina? Yumi had met the woman a few times, and she seemed friendly at worst… so it was possible. But still, Yumi just couldn't see it.

"Onee-sama?" Touko's voice sounded in her ear, jolting Yumi back to attention.

"Mmm?"

"I asked you what your plans were for the next week." Touko said, her tone patient and soft. "I have a free day in the middle of the week, and I was hoping we could spend the day together." That was news to Yumi, who blinked in surprise.

"A free day? In the middle of the week? How'd you manage that?" She asked.

The other chuckled into the phone. "By a free day, I actually mean my lectures are cancelled. One instructor is getting surgery, another has prior engagements. And the other…" She hesitated, but only slightly. "Well, I think I can skip one lecture and still come out on top, don't you?"

Yumi laughed. "I don't think I should condone you skipping classes to see me, Touko."

"I don't think you have any right to talk to me about skipping classes, Onee-sama." Touko said, her tone turning slightly stiff. "As I recall, when you were a student, you must have missed  _over seventy percent_  of your classes."

"I still kept up my attendance enough to graduate…" Yumi mumbled, pouting her lips. She knew Touko couldn't see the gesture, but she pretended the younger woman could. She hadn't missed that many classes.  _Honestly!_  "And I still did fairly well in all my classes."

Touko sighed, a long and low sound in Yumi's ear. "That you did, Onee-sama. That you did." Truthfully, one of the only reasons Yumi did as well as she did in her classes, despite rarely attending lectures, was mainly because of her lab hours and self-tutoring (usually with Touko's assistance). In fact, without help from her petite soeur, both academically and privately, Yumi wouldn't have successfully graduated. Both She and Touko, though, didn't mention that particular truth. There were a few things the pair never mentioned from her university years, after all.

After a few moments, Touko cleared her throat. "Well, if that is everything today, I will let you have a quiet evening. Keep what I said about next week in mind." She said.

"Alright." Yumi agreed, sitting up on her bed with a grunt. "Thanks a lot for calling. I really appreciate these chats we have."

"Hmm, in that case, maybe you can call me on occasion?" Touko asked, a hint of humor in her tone.

Yumi laughed at that. "Of course, Touko. Of course."

"Be sure to thank Sei-sama for spending time with you, Onee-sama." Touko said seriously.

"Right." Yumi scoffed. Sure she would.

"Oh… Onee-sama?" Touko started to ask, but hesitated.

"Hmm?" Yumi tiled her head towards her phone. There was a few long moments of pause before Touko finally sighed.

"Never mind. Have a good day tomorrow."

Yumi smiled. "Will do. 'Night." She said and, shutting off her phone, lay back down on her bed with a sigh. She lay there for a few long moments, reveling in the silence her room held. Aside from the ticking clock on her wall and the ambient noise drifting in from outside, there was no sound at all.

Tick. Tick. A car drove past her house. Tick tick. Another car. Thump thump. The sound of Yumi's heartbeat drummed steadily in her ears. It was all a familiar rhythm to her. Familiar, and secure. It helped her think, helped her relax.

"Thank Sei-sama, huh?" Yumi muttered softly into the soft of her room. The older woman came into  _her home_ … ate  _her food_ … and did nothing but ask invasive questions about something that was absolutely not her business. She had done nothing that called for Yumi to thank the older woman.

And yet…

Pursing her lips, Yumi rolled over to the edge of her bed and opened the top drawer of her bedside table. Inside was the small, leather-bound diary she had been leafing through over the past few days. She had been hesitant to go through the book again after Emi Kimigura had suggested that she do the previous week. But after the first time, and her subsequent blowing up at Touko over the phone about her frustration, she found that opening up the book and reading through it was slightly easier. Most of her anxiety about the thing was in her head, Yumi knew, and if she just let out her feelings, then actually thinking about it was easier.

That's how it seemed, anyway.

Propping up one of her pillows against the back of the bed, Yumi sat up and cracked open the diary. She licked her thumb, so she could easily turn pages, and flipped forward a few entries. She didn't have all that many, somewhere in the teens, and they generally followed some sort of time frame. A few days ago, she had read up until the end of the second entry. Following that logic, she should go ahead and read the third. But, the surprise visit from Sei that day tickled Yumi's memory, and in a sudden decision, she flipped ahead to the fourth entry.

She could go back to the third later, if she wanted.

Settling back into her pillow, Yumi began to read.

0 – 0 – 0

**_From the diary of Yumi Fukuzawa: Entry 4_ **

_What was the most surprising turn-around, out of everything that changed after Onee-sama left up until I started university, were perhaps Youko-sama, Eriko-sama, and Sei-sama. In the weeks following graduation, I rarely left the house, only venturing out to go shopping with mother or when Touko, Yoshino and Shimako dragged me. I would oblige, of course, and without argument. After Onee-sama left, I had stopped fighting everything and just let things happen. It was summer, and both Yoshino and Shimako wanted to spend as much time with me as possible before they started classes at their respective schools. Who was I to argue with that?_

_Anyway, not too long after Onee-sama left, I received a visit from Youko-sama. She was incredibly subdued, and very apologetic. It was almost as if she blamed herself for what happened. It was so unlike her that I had no idea how to react. It wasn't her fault, obviously, so I vehemently waved off her continued apologies… but she still tried. Perhaps it was because that, as Onee-sama's grande soeur, she felt somehow responsible for not seeing this sooner. That if she had, she could have done something to prevent it, or at least make it easier on everyone. She and both knew, deep down, than it wouldn't have helped… but it gave us something to cry about together._

_We had both lost a sister, and that made us the same. It was the first time I ever truly felt connected with Youko Mizuno. Ever since I first saw the former rose in the Rose Mansion, that day when I met Onee-sama, Youko-sama always seemed so… unapproachable. So… distant. So… unfamiliar. I don't know why, but I had always held the opinion in my mind that Youko-sama was so different from me, and the only connection we ever had was through Onee-sama._

_And yet, as we both talked about Onee-sama like she had died (to me, she all but truly died), I felt for the first time a true connection to the older girl. A true connection that, not only was brought about by our mutual relationship to Onee-sama, but was also made stronger by her absence. It was a truly wonderful thing._

_Before she left, she told me that she was transferring to Hokkaido the next term for her major courses. She didn't know when, or if, she would come back to Tokyo. I understood, and accepted her decision. She was her own woman, after all._

_She told me that after graduating, she got married and now lives up in the Hokkaido region. Her husband is a nice man and a caring father. Their son, Hatsuto, is now three years old. If I ever find myself up in that area, I will be treated as a sister to Youko-sama and an aunt to Hatsuto._

_Eriko-sama was a mixed case. I was never really close to the former Rosa Foetida; that was more Rei-sama and Yoshino-san's deal. But, I guess she felt a sense of duty to visit me. It was awkward, really. She didn't know what to say to me. I didn't know what to say to her. We just quietly sipped at the tea Touko brought for us (the girl spent all her free time during the summer at my house now) and let our eyes and thoughts wander._

_Eriko-sama was always an interesting person to me. She, along with both Youko-sama and Sei-sama always seemed so high above me, it was as if nothing could ever reach them. Nothing could ever bother them. They hardly seemed like the same people as Yoshino-san, Shimako-san and I. But, even as I thought about that, I couldn't help but that maybe that's how underclassmen always thought of their seniors. Aya-chan always seemed awestruck around me, and most of the time it was quite humorous. Had it been the same with Eriko-sama and I?_

_I still remembered the time, one of the only times actually, I talked with her. She had gone to the dentist, and I had mistakenly thought she had been struck… or something. It was an embarrassing misunderstanding that had been smoothed out in the long run, but it was one of the only times I could clearly remember actually conversing with the intimidating former rose. Was she remembering that instance right at that moment? When I was awkwardly looking back at her? What was she thinking about? Was she trying to think of something to say? Something consoling? Something uplifting? Something sagely?_

_To this day, I would never know what she was thinking at that time. Eventually, we came to the mutual understanding that she had stayed her welcome, and she got up to leave. As she left my room, she turned back to me and, with a slight nod, said "Take care of yourself, Yumi-chan."_

_She moved out of Tokyo after she graduated. Rei-sama keeps in contact, and I get updates occasionally. She never got married, but she does have a steady boyfriend. I never heard much aside from that._

_It was Sei-sama that was the truly surprising one. It took her a full three weeks to finally visit me. When she did, I was expecting the same loud spoken, flirty, free-spirited former Rosa Gigantea I had known before. She didn't disappoint my expectations, of course. She came in like a whirlwind, forcing Touko out of the room (much to her annoyance) and all-but knocking the wind out of me with a bone-crushing hug. It seemed to me the same Sei-sama as ever; a breath of fresh air that made me feel better, even if it was only a little bit. What shocked me was what happened next._

_"I'm sorry, Yumi-chan." She whispered into me ear. It was a soft, quiet voice that I had never, ever heard from the boisterous older girl. It was so unfamiliar to me that I actually didn't believe it had been her that spoke it._

_"Eh…?" I asked, unsure of what to do or what to say._

_Sei just kept her hold on me and spoke again. "I'm sorry. Really, I am, Yumi-chan." It was such a strange thing to hear from her, that I actually laughed a little._

_"Don't apologize, Sei-sama. Nothing was your fault." I said, reaching up to the woman's back. I felt her shake her head beside mine. Her blonde, shoulder length hair tickled my cheek as it rubbed against my face._

_"It was no one's fault, Yumi-chan. It just happened."_

_I felt myself shake my head and smile. "I was my fault." I said. "It was my fault for being too caught up on her, Sei-sama. My fault for expecting too much…"_

_Sei pulled away from me and held me out at arm's length. Her eyes, usually holding a soft, charismatic, sardonic glint, were sharp and focused. I felt my breath hitch in my throat as I faced her stern gaze. "Don't you ever say that, Yumi-chan." She whispered fiercely. "It was not your fault, and I never want to hear you say anything like that again!" I felt myself nod, my body growing numb as I stared back at the older girl. After a moment, her features relaxed, and she pulled me into another hug. "These things happen. When they do, you can just hide from them… or accept it and move on." She said softly._

_I nodded, feeling my throat constrict painfully. This was not good. I hadn't cried for a while, now, and I didn't want to start now. If I started, I wasn't sure if I would be able to stop._

_Sei-sama… don't say it._

_"It wasn't your fault, it wasn't her fault." Sei-sama continued. "It was just a bad situation that the two of you were forced into. It could have happened to anyone."_

_But it didn't. It happened to me._

_"Yumi-chan… I know it hurts. But you need to know that you don't have to go through this alone."_

_I am alone._

_"I understand what you are going through, so I also know what you are feeling. Alone… abandoned… nothing to do and nowhere to go. Left in the snow by yourself… I just want you to know that you can rely on others. Don't make the same mistakes I made."_

_The same mistakes?_

_I felt tears well up in my eyes and I clenched my jaw in a vain attempt to stem them. Sei-sama just held onto me tighter. "Just… rely on us a little, alright Yumi-chan?" I heard her whisper. I shivered and clenched my fists tightly into balls. My spine stiffened and I tried backing away, only to be held onto tighter by the woman. She seemed to sense my response and pulled me deeper into her chest. "It's okay to cry." She said._

_I had cried so much already, I didn't even know I still had tears. Though, when Sei-sama said it was okay, I felt myself give in. I reached around her back and pushed my face deep into her chest. There, in Sei Satou's embrace, I cried again. I cried and cried, not really caring who heard or what they would do. Touko would likely pop a blood vessel, but she never came in._

_Eventually, my sobs ceased and Sei-sama released me. I backed away and whipped my face with my hand. I looked up to see Sei-sama holding out a handkerchief to me. I giggled, embarrassed, and took the piece of cloth, wiping my face and nose with it. "Thank you." I finally said after blowing my nose. "I needed that."_

_Sei chuckled, finally showing a bit of her old expression. She reached up and scratched at the back of her head with her hand. "Eh… it's no big deal, Yumi-chan." She said, grinning slightly. "I just wanted to let you know that I can be relied upon as well, you know? I want you to know…" She let her arm fall and she shrugged, kicking the floor with her foot. "I don't know… I could be a 'big sister' type, too."_

_I cocked an eyebrow and spoiled myself have a small smirk. "A big sister that regularly molests her little sister?"_

_Sei-sama laughed and pushed her index fingers together in front of her chest. "The game industry makes a mint off that, you know."_

_I scoffed and held my arms out, crossing them over my chest. I felt loads better after I had cried, and actually felt a little hungry. "Do not write about me and send it to an ero-game company please."_

_Sei_ _-sama_ _shrugged again. "No promises, Yumi-chan. No promises." She winked at me and turned her head towards the door. "Anyway I, uh… I should probably leave."_

_I took a step towards the older girl and tentatively reached up to grab her. I stopped in mid-step. "Will you… I mean, will you still visit?" I asked, my tone taking a drastic turn. Youko-sama was leaving and I was never really that close to Eriko-sama… so somehow the thought of Sei-sama leaving as well left a large pit in the bottom of my stomach._

_The older girl cocked her head to the side. "Absolutely." She said, and then grinned. "Could it be that you actually want attention from me now?"_

_I blinked and immediately fixed my posture, willing myself to seem more intimidating. "I just... what with Youko-sama leaving and…" I trailed off, not quite sure about what I really wanted to say. What did I want to say, anyway?_

_Sei-sama seemed to get the idea and stepped forward. She put a hand on my shoulder and leaned down to my level. "Yumi-chan," She said softly. "If you ever need anything, just let me know. I know I'm not the most reliable figure you know— you have Shimako for that— but I hope you know I think of you as a little sister." She squeezed my shoulder, and I felt myself smile up at the woman. "You can rely on me a little, okay?"_

_I nodded, feeling the pit in my stomach lighten almost at once. Sei Satou-sama was a lot of things; loud, a bit rough-around-the-edges, loves pushing other people buttons… but she was dedicated to her friends, and loved them all equally. I knew that she wouldn't always be around, that she could very well leave me along with Onee-sama. But, until then… I could rely on her. She could be the big sister I never had. One that watched out for me from afar. One that I could go to for advice, both romantic and plutonic. One that I could be proud to say, 'I want to rely on you' to._

_"Thank you, Sei-sama." I said, and gave the older girl a tight embrace. She chuckled and wrapped her arms around me in return._

_"Anytime."_

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**Part 5**

Yumi shut the small book slowly, and placed it beside her leg on her bed. She took a long, steady breath and lay her head back, wincing only slightly as her neck popped with the action. For a while she lay there, looking at the ceiling. It had to be somewhere around midnight now, and Yumi should be going to sleep if she had any intention of getting work done in the morning. She wasn't in any  _hurry_  to get work done…she had plenty of time… but she had never been a procrastinator.

But before she went to sleep, there was something she needed to do.

Rolling over, she found her phone (previously discarded somewhere on her bed before retrieving her diary) and pulled up the contact list. Finding Sei's number was simple, as there wasn't all that many people in the 'S' group.

There was nothing all that positive about dropping onto another person's home at six in the morning… or even six-thirty for that matter. And there are even less positive aspects about going into another person's home that early and eating their food, asking questions about a topic one should have no business putting their nose in. Honestly, everything about Sei's behaviour today bordered on what any normal person would call 'appropriate'. But then again… Yumi wasn't just any normal person.

She started a new message to Sei and typed out just two words. After sending the message, she replaced her phone on her bedside table and hopped up off her bed, padding over to the bathroom to get ready for bed.

After exiting the bathroom her eyes travelled to her phone, which had just dimmed to standby as she shut the door. Sidling over to her handheld device, she reached down and keyed the phone back to life. A message was waiting for her, and she pressed the toggle to read it. There was only one word.

 _'_ _Anytime._ _'_

0 – 0 – 0

_End of chapter 7_


	8. Chapter 8

**The Princess and the Sparrow**

_Chapter 8_

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 1**

One of the first things people notice when they redo something is that no matter what it is, if they put effort into it, they are most likely much prouder of their second attempt than they were their first. Not only that, but given the right circumstances their work actually seems to turn out better, as well.

It was mainly because of that fact, and thanks in part to a generous helping of instant coffee in the morning, that Yumi managed to not only re-create her draft that had been destroyed during Sei's visit the previous day, but actually improve on it. In the process of drawing out her initial sketch, she was able to catch a few crucial errors she had made but not noticed, as well as come up with numerous fresh ideas about how to use the amount of land allotted to use with extra landscaping. It just goes to show that the old saying 'Measure Twice, Cut Once' was true in more than one field.

It was needless to say that her success and flash of design inspiration put Yumi in a good mood all morning long. That, coupled with the memory of Sei's visit fresh in her mind, gave the architect cause to enjoy the process of working. She had music playing softly from her computer behind her, to which she hummed along with contently. She whisked her pencil along her straightedge and worked with a flourish, smiling all the while. It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining, Yumi was in a terrific mood, and her work was progressing splendidly- considering she had begun just a couple days ago. Not many things could effectively ruin the good mood radiating from the woman.

Just as Yumi was about to switch her standard pencil for a mechanical one, her phone buzzed from beside her table. Yumi leaned over to check the caller ID, and then her heart skipped a beat.

The name that appeared on her phone's display was Suguru Kashiwagi.

Yumi sat there, staring at her phone for a long moment. She briefly entertained the thought of just letting the other wait on the line until he got bored and hung up, but quickly disregarded it. Knowing the Kashiwagi heir as well as she did, he wouldn't call without good reason and therefore... he would wait. He would wait until Yumi picked up. If she didn't, he would simply call again in a few minutes. It was simply how he worked. It was one of the many things she knew about the man.

He was different from his cousin, Yumi idly realized as she reached out for the phone. Touko would call only once and wait for Yumi to call back, no matter how long it would take. She remembered one instance where Touko stayed up until two in the morning for Yumi to call her back. Being caught up in a working frenzy, the older woman simply hadn't noticed her soeur had called until she was ready to turn in for the night.

Or, in that case, the morning.

Yumi felt her fingers grasp her phone and pull it into her lap. Suguru's name still blinked up at her, clearly impressing on her the importance of the call. Just why the hell was he calling anyway? Why now? How long had it been since Suguru Kashiwagi actually contacted Yumi? It must have been at least half a year. Yumi made it a point to avoid frequent contact with the man, for certain reasons. And in return, Suguru left Yumi well enough alone, only going out of his way to contact with her every now and again for old times' sake to see how she was doing. It had been like that for the past six years.

So, in effect, for him to call Yumi out of the blue was considered odd. At least… these days it was. And when he did, it was usually awkward. Their conversations either centered around themselves, Touko… or—

Suddenly, a horrible thought occurred to Yumi. Ever since she and Suguru had their falling out, the main thing, of many, that tied them together was their relationship to Touko. To Touko... and _Sachiko_. Yumi knew if there was something about Touko, the doctoral student would likely tell her in person. She knew better than to go through Suguru Kashiwagi to get to Yumi. So... that only left one other option.

This call probably had something to do with Sachiko Ogasawara

Slowly, Yumi fumbled with the answer key and held the phone to her ear. She cleared her throat. "Hello, this is Yumi Fukuzawa." She said clearly and calmly as she could. If Sachiko was indeed the reason Suguru was calling, Yumi still didn't want it to deter her from the fact that she suspected as much. She needed to be normal… as normal as she could manage when talking to the Kashiwagi heir. Though, she never could manage it perfectly, even as a girl.

"Good morning, Yumi-chan. It's been a while, hasn't it?" Came the man's smooth voice into her ear. Upon hearing it again, especially after such a long time, Yumi felt her back stiffen. "I hope I didn't interrupt anything important."

"Hello, Kashiwagi-kun." Yumi returned with a polite greeting of her own, willing herself to use the man's family name. "It has been a while. What can I do for you?" She knew she sounded short, but honestly, the sooner she finished their conversation, the better. Even hearing his voice was starting to bring back memories better left forgotten.

"I was actually hoping I could borrow you for a couple hours." The man said, his tone a mix of sounding distracted and business-like at the same time. It was the same tone he always used when asking for something he knew he would eventually get. Hearing it used on her the same way he used it for business slightly annoyed Yumi, and caused her grip the phone a little tighter.

"I happen to be a busy today, Kashiwagi-kun." She replied, her voice clipped. "Why don't you just tell me what you need to tell me so we can conclude our  _business_ quickly?" She stressed the word, hoping to drive her point home to the older man. Suguru, with as much history as he and Yumi had, should know better than to treat her like she was a job. He should know better than to treat Yumi the same as everything else he dealt with.

The other was quiet for a moment. Then he came back, his voice noticeably softer and the business tone all but gone. "I'm sorry. I was hoping to talk face-to-face, Yumi. It's..." He trailed off, and then cleared his throat. "It's important."

Yumi's eyes narrowed at the familiarity he used her name with, but chose to ignore it. After not hearing from him in such a long time, it hardly seemed like an important issue right now. After all, it was the tone he now used that caught her attention rather than the way he said her name. He only used that tone- that serious, quiet tone, when what he had to say was actually important... as he said.

She didn't really have any reservations against meeting with him. The two of them hadn't been on great terms over the past few years, but were professional and respectful enough to keep things civil, if not friendly between each other when they did meet. So while awkward at times, Yumi was proud that at least one of her past relationships hadn't completely deteriorated after they ended. She and Suguru had too many things that tied them together to completely ignore each other.

But still, it was strange for the man to call Yumi out of nowhere and ask to see her. She had every right to deny him, and by all rights should just let him try again later instead of agreeing to his impromptu meeting. But Suguru knew this, just as much as Yumi did. He was a smart man, and a respectful one. He knew what it meant for him to be asking Yumi for her time. He was aware of the history, the same as Yumi. And yet, he was still asking. That counted for something, at least.

Suppressing a sigh, Yumi shook her head and closed her eyes. "Fine. Lunch, then." She acquiesced tiredly. After all, one meeting should hardly hurt anything. If the man had something important to discuss… even if it was Sachiko… then Yumi could spare a couple hours.

"That sounds agreeable." Suguru replied. His tone was back to his usual coolness, but there was a degree of relief there that Yumi heard with practiced ears. "I'll pick you up at eleven thirty."

"Sounds great." Yumi said without much enthusiasm.

"I'll see you then." Surugu said, and then paused. "Oh, Yumi?"

"What?"

"Dress nice, won't you?"

0 - 0 – 0

**Part 2**

As soon as Yumi was led through the threshold of the restaurant Suguru picked into the main dining area by a lively waiter and was met with a room full of men in expensive suits and women in lovely dresses, she sent a silence prayer of thanks to whoever it was that gave her the specially-tailored suit in her closet. She usually preferred to wear dresses and skirts to suits, but the fact that she was having lunch with Suguru Kashiwagi, of all people, meant that she didn't need to dress to impress. All she needed was to appear nice, professional, and mature. Her suit, with a light application of make-up, helped her attain that level of maturity that made her not stand out in the sea of rich, affluent faces that populated the large room.

Almost, anyway. Wearing her suit instead of a dress did cause more than a few eyes to wander over her figure. It wasn't often that a woman of Yumi's age wore a suit instead of something more feminine… in a place as nice as this, at least.

"Will this table be acceptable, Kashiwagi-sama?" The waiter asked politely, gesturing to a round table in a corner of the dining area meant for four customers.

"It will." Suguru said simply, casting a leisurely gaze over the table and the surrounding area. He had specifically requested a small table away from other customers when arriving and the staff, apparently recognizing the wealthy Kashiwagi heir-either from word of mouth or frequent visits to the restaurant, Yumi wasn't quite sure- was all too willing to accommodate.

The waiter nodded and held out the chair closest to Yumi, clearly intending for her to take his invitation to sit down. "Ma'am." He said, smiling towards Yumi. She ignored the "Ma'am" comment ("I'm still young!") and sat down stiffly, placing her purse on the seat to her right. The waiter then strode over to the Suguru and held out a chair for him, which he took with a small nod of thanks. "Please, have a look at our lunch menu and don't hesitate to call if you need anything." The waiter finally said, sliding a menu in front of Yumi and a matching one in front of the other. With a final bow, he strode back to his perch to watch for any other customers that might have needed assistance.

"I can't believe you still come here, Kashiwagi-kun." Yumi found herself muttering out loud as she looked around the dining area. She hadn't intended to speak out loud, but the man across from her heard nonetheless.

"You're surprised?" Suguru asked, his eyebrows rising. "I quite like this place. You and I came here quite a lot before, if I'm not mistaken."

Yumi let her face harden and looked away from the man, putting her hand under her chin. "That was before." She said softly. She looked across the room and spied a man and a woman talking quietly about something across their own table. Yumi idly wondered what it was they were talking about… but quickly disregarded it as likely something uninteresting.

"You cut your hair." Suguru said, pulling Yumi's attention back to him. She lowered her hand back down to the table and straightened up, casting a slightly confused look at the man.

"You just noticed that now?" She asked blankly.

Suguru shrugged with his hands. "To be honest, I noticed right away. I just chose to say something now."

Yumi scoffed at his words and shook her head. It was so very like the man, Yumi thought, to think of something and then wait until the best time to say it. He had always been an opportunist, whether in business… or privately. "Hair grows. If I didn't trim it every now and again, I would end up a troglodyte." Yumi said and gestured to the Suguru's own head of hair. It was flawless as always. "Not all of us can have hair that always stays perfect all day, every day for the entirety of his life."

Suguri blinked and reached up to grasp a lock of his dark hair, twisting it around his long fingers. "Really? Is that what you think?" He asked, curiosity leaking into his voice.

"It's what Touko thinks." Yumi rolled her eyes and reached out for the menu in front of her. "She's convinced you had some sort of gypsy curse you so that your hair never changes."

"Interesting." Suguru mused, still tugging at his hair. Noticing that Yumi was looking through the menu, he picked up his own. "They changed the menu since you came here last." He said unnecessarily. The architect lowered the book and narrowed her eyes at the man across from her.

"I can see that much, Suguru." Yumi snapped, then immediately shut her mouth and went back to reading. She hadn't meant to use his first name. She had meant to keep things professional and distant during the course of this meeting. This was mainly due to the fact that the two of them weren't as close as they used to be, and as a result it would be awkward if they acted too friendly with each other. But, additionally, if the conversation turned towards the subject of Sachiko, as Yumi suspected it would, she wanted to keep things between them civil. She knew as much as anyone that when the Ogasawara heiress was brought up… well, it was suffice to say that Yumi wasn't the most friendly person in the world.

Suguru, hearing the familiarity in which Yumi used his name, smiled. "You can order anything you like, Yumi-chan." He said softly. "It's on me."

"Is that so?" The architect asked sarcastically, giving the man a glance over the top of the menu. Seeing the nod he gave, she allowed herself a small smirk. She would make him regret that little bit of charity.

Soon, after the waiter came back with glasses of water, Yumi and Suguru placed their orders (Yumi ordered a full six dishes… two of them Wangyu marbled beef, much to the waiter's surprise and Suguru's humor) and the two were left alone again. The man was still chuckling as Yumi silently took a sip from her glass.

"And just what is so funny?" Yumi snapped.

"You know, all that Wangyu will go right to your thighs." Suguru said smoothly, his smile smug. Yumi bared her teeth and looked away.

"Fuck you, Suguru. My thighs are none of your business." She growled, taking another sip of water. He really didn't have to point that out… for all the man's intelligence, he was quite stupid. Besides, it wasn't as if Yumi was going to  _eat_  all that meat! She just ordered that much to slight the Kashiwagi heir and take a bite out of his smug attitude if only by a minuscule amount.

"Too true, that." Suguru sighed and took a drink from his own glass, not really minding the amount of food ordered but sniffing at the woman's choice of language. Yumi had never heard the man swear before, and was also well aware of his aversion to foul language. It was because of that she willingly used it around him. It had always been one of the ways of annoying the older man. One of very few ways, actually. "I would wager that both of us are quite agreeable by that fact, aren't we?" He continued, his laugh gone, but the remains of one still lingering on his lips.

Yumi leveled a curious look at the man and arched an eyebrow. "Suguru Kashiwagi-kun, did you just attempt to make a joke?" She asked, giving up on her goal to not use the man's name. It was too late anyway. He seemed intent on using hers, so she may as well match him. Suguru shrugged with his hands again and leaned forward on his elbows, giving Yumi a good going-over with his eyes. After a few moments, the woman began to feel uncomfortable and crossed her arms over her chest. She knew for a fact that she had nothing to fear from the Kashiwagi heir… but still… "What?" She finally asked.

The man shook his head evenly. "Nothing." He said. "I just was trying to remember the last time we actually had a conversation like this." That thought gave Yumi pause. How long  _had_  it been since the two of them talked? Not just conversed… or spoke to each other as a necessity… but actually  _talked_? Yumi honestly couldn't remember. Most times, she would rather not have much to do with Suguru, and generally kept up contact because Touko was so fond of him. But now that she was here, and having a somewhat friendly, if not snarky conversation with the man… Yumi actually found it a little fun. It was almost like old times. Suguru could always put something of a smile on Yumi's face, after all. He knew all the right buttons to push.

"I don't remember." Yumi finally answered truthfully. She took another drink of water, sighing appreciatively at the hint of lemon in it, and then shrugged as she set back down the glass. "A while, I guess."

"Too long, Yumi-chan." Suguru agreed. Yumi cast a speculative glance over the man's face, trying but failing to pick up any hidden meaning behind his words.

"And just what are you implying by that?" She asked curtly.

The man shrugged again. "I am simply expressing my thoughts on our relationship these past few years."

Yumi sat up a little straighter, her face hardening. This was  _not_  a direction she really wanted to steer the conversation towards. "Our  _relationship_ -" She said, stressing the word. "-is suitable for people like us, Kashiwagi-kun. I don't know what you are trying to do by implying otherwise."

"Ah." Suguru breathed and cleared his throat into his hand. "Of course. I didn't mean it that way, Yumi." Yumi felt her lip twitch at the familiar shift in the manner he used to address her, but chose to ignore it. It didn't really matter to her how he called her, anyway. "I was merely suggesting that we try and spend more time together…" He paused, choosing his words. "Like the old days." He finally said.

Yumi glared at the man across from her. She wasn't going to have any of it. She didn't know what he was trying to do by suggesting they spend more time together… but she had spent too much time getting over Suguru to just fall into his traps again. Too much had happened to just forget about it and go back to the way things were before. Silently, she picked up a napkin from the table and wiped her lips. She then picked up her purse from the seat beside her and stood up, causing Suguru to stare up at her, a confused looking replacing his features.

"The old days are dead, Suguru." She said coldly. "You should know that. If that is all you called me here to discuss, then I suggest you take me home before I get angry."

There was something that passed through the man's eyes for a moment, something that Yumi couldn't quite make out. It clouded over his expression and seemed to replace it with a mix of confusion and regret. But, before Yumi could actually comment on it, it disappeared and Suguru's regular visage was back. He cleared his throat and gestured to Yumi's seat. "No. You're right, I'm sorry. That wasn't why I called you here today, Yumi-chan." He said, reverting back to a more casual way to talk to the woman. "Please, sit down."

Yumi let her glare soften after a few moments, and then re-seated herself across from the man. "Then, why did you call me out today?" She asked warily. Now that the topic was again back to the 'important' thing Suguru wanted to discuss, Yumi found herself thinking about her earlier assumption that it was something about Sachiko Ogasawara. That would really be the only thing the Kashiwagi heir would likely deem important enough to call Yumi out to discuss with her about. So Yumi in turn found herself bracing for the worst.

Suguru picked up his glass and swirled the water idly around for a moment, and then took a sip. Yumi watched him carefully, waiting for the man to speak. When he did, it wasn't about anything Yumi expected.

"I heard you entered into a contract with Daisuke Onoga-sama."

Yumi's mouth fell open slightly, not quite sure she actually heard the man correctly. He did say Daisuke Onoga… didn't he? Onoga—not Sachiko Ogasawara? "Uh… what?" She asked stupidly. It was the only think she could say.

Suguru seemed to understand her confusion and smiled. "Sorry. I should explain. Touko contacted me last week to tell me that you and Yuuki-chi agreed to design Daisuke Onoga-sama's summer house." He said as Yumi slowly began to understand. "And while you didn't enter into a business contract with his company, since you are doing a private project with him, you still met with his lawyer and project head, right?"

Yumi nodded slowly, finally getting up to speed on the situation. "I see… so Touko told you, huh?" The man's silence was her answer. "Did she tell you anything else about it?"

"She just told me the bare essentials and I assumed the rest. Your job details – the details she knew anyway, yours and Yuuki-chi's projected time frame and…" His eyes bore into Yumi's own, as if watching for a reaction. "And the fact that Daisuke Onoga-sama contacted you using your relationship through the Ogasawara Group."

Yumi sighed and leaned forward on her hands, sending a silent prayer of thanks to Maria-sama for not having the actual reason Suguru called her out being her old grande soeur. And yet, somewhere inside, she also felt a small pang of disappointment. Maybe she actually had wanted to talk to the older man about the Ogasawara heiress. He was, in fact, one of the only people she knew of (and talked to for that matter) that had reliable contact with the woman.

"I see." She said dejectedly. "So, what, you wanted to warn me or something?"

The look Suguru gave her was one of concern. "Not at all. I simply wanted to ensure you were alright working with Onoga-sama."

"What?" Yumi asked, her confusion growing with every moment. "Alright? Why would I not be…" She trailed off, trying to pick apart the older man's words. After a moment, a thought occurred to her. "Is there something about Onoga-san that either Yuuki or I should know?"

"You mean aside from the fact that he is a clean-cut, Japanese, law-abiding businessman?" Suguru asked sardonically. "Not really, no."

"I wouldn't exactly call the man 'clean-cut'." Yumi muttered, remembering Daisuke Onoga's short, stubbly beard from their one and only meeting. Suguru laughed and idly looked around the dining room before returning his gaze to Yumi. "So he's safe, then?"

Suguru nodded. "He is. As long as he is concerned about giving himself face with the Ogasawara Group, you have nothing to worry about when working with him."

"Ah. Yea, Yuuki said as much." Yumi said. "He told me that the main reason Onoga-san gave us the contract was to gain face with the Ogasawara's. Pissed me off quite a bit… but whatever. Business is business."

The Kashiwagi heir cocked his head to the side a little in a gesture of confusion. "Are you sure you are alright with it?" He asked carefully. "Touko was…  _we both_  are a bit worried about you."

Yumi leaned back in her chair and sighed. "She would be worried, huh? Touko always worries about me…"

"We all do, Yumi." Suguru said solemnly.

"You have a funny way of showing it, Suguru." Yumi snorted, and immediately felt a small pang of guilt. It wasn't  _necessarily his_  fault she practically cut him out of her personal life, and the man was doing what he could with the resources he had. Clearing her throat, Yumi attempted to repair the dyke. "I mean… ugh, you know what I mean." She tried, but failed. She had always been bad getting her point across, even as a younger girl.

Luckily, the man across from her didn't have that problem. "I understand." He said, smiling. Yumi opened her mouth to ask what the man actually understood, but was interrupted when two waiters arrived, their arms loaded with food. Watching them place plate after plate in front of her, Yumi felt her cheeks warm. Ordering so much in an attempt to annoy Suguru seemed like a good idea at the time… but now that she was actually looking at the small mountain of food in front of her, and the Kashiwagi heir's sardonic smile across from her…

Well…

"Bon Appétit." Suguru said, his smile widening. _Shit._

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 3**

Thirty minutes later a very full, and slightly foolish-feeling, Yumi pushed away a plate of spiced pork and looked across the table to see Suguru Kashiwagi, who stared back at her with a bemused smirk etched on his face. Out of the six whole dishes Yumi had ordered, she had managed to polish off two of them, and was only able to make a dent in the third before she was too full of beef, vegetables, and pork to manage any more.

She leaned back with a sigh and forced down some water, which was promptly re-filled by the waiter who, strangely enough, happened to pass by at that very moment. "Thank you." She said towards the man sitting across from her.

Suguru nodded. "Of course, Yumi-chan. It makes me happy to see you eating." He said, still smiling. "Though, from what Touko says, you seem to be doing fairly well for yourself as far as eating is concerned."

Yumi blinked and narrowed her eyes at the man. It only took a moment for her to understand what he was really trying to say. "Are… are you telling me I'm  _fat_?! _"_ She gaped, not quite believing what she heard. Out of all the things she ever was called or thought of as, 'fat' was never one of them. And the fact that Suguru, of all people, was telling her was just adding salt to the wound.

"Oh no, Yumi, of course I am not saying that." Suguru chuckled and shook his head. "Touko is the one who said it."

Yumi's mouth hung open for a few moments, and then she snapped it shut. "I'm going to  _murder_  her." She growled as she took another drink of water. "And then sit on her corpse. Calling me fat... what the hell is she-" She trailed off at a raised hand from Suguru.

"Calm down, Yumi. I only meant to say that you have made a good hobby out of cooking." He said, still sporting a smirk. "Touko tells me often of the food you make for her and everyone else. Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you cook for everyone at New Year's?"

Yumi shifted in her seat, crossing her legs under the table in an attempt to sit up straighter. "Yea." She said slowly. "I did. It went over pretty well."

Suguru nodded and expertly manipulated a pair of chopsticks to pick up a piece of sushi from his plate. He took a small, testing bite before popping the entire thing into his mouth. He chewed for a few moments and then swallowed. "I'm happy you found a creative hobby. When did you start cooking?" He asked.

Yumi silently stared back at Suguru for a while, feeling slightly uncomfortable being questioned about that by the man. She specifically hadn't told Suguru about her hobby, simply because it had been because of him she had started. Not directly, of course, but he had been a large reason. Yumi had needed an outlet to pour her energy into at the time, or... well, things might have turned out much differently. And essentially, she didn't really want the man to know the exact reasons why she started cooking. "I... started my last year of Geidai. I just needed something to take my mind off of... things. Rei-sama was willing to teach me." She finally said, hanging her head a little.

Suguru eyed Yumi for a moment, and then nodded, understanding. He sighed quietly and picked up his glass of water, taking a slow swig. The two sat there for a long time, not saying anything. Suguru periodically sipped at his water, letting his eyes wander around the room full of diners. Yumi stared at her unfinished food uncomfortably, not quite sure if she should talk or not. She hadn't intended or wanted the conversation to turn this direction specifically. But, somehow, every time she and the Kashiwagi heir met by themselves, this topic was touched upon in some way. Whether it was intentional or not, by Suguru or Yumi herself, it had to be mentioned. And, as a result, the conversation always became awkward. Neither knew what to say or how to act. Suguru, for all his politeness and intelligence, just didn't know how to breach the topic around Yumi. And Yumi herself... she just didn't want to talk about it. Period.

Finally, it was Yumi who broke the silence with an unexpected question. "So, how is Onee-sama?"

Suguru stiffened in his chair, his eyes swiveling back to Yumi, a slightly disbelieving look in his face. Yumi stared back at the man trying her hardest to keep her expression neutral. It never worked out as well as she would have liked, but at least it gave her something to concentrate on. The two stared at each other for what seemed like hours, until Suguru finally seemed to shake off his surprise. "I'm... I am surprised you are asking me this, Yumi." He finally said, placing his glass back on the table.

"Why are you surprised?" Yumi asked softly.

"You never asked me about her before." Suguru leaned forward on his elbows, resting his chin in his hands.

Yumi let her eyes wander away from Suguru and rest on the couple she had found eating earlier. They were just getting prepared to leave; the man was helping the woman into her coat, gently slipping the dark green jacket on over her matching green dress. "I haven't asked anyone about her before." She finally said, still not looking at Suguru.

"Why are you asking now? Why ask me?"

Yumi thought for a moment, watching as the couple walked towards the threshold to the dining hall and disappeared from her sight. After they left, she slowly returned her attention to Suguru. "I don't know." She said after a long minute. "I'm asking you because you are the only one I know that regularly communicates with her. Well-" She corrected herself. "You and Touko."

Suguru shrugged; that same gesture with his hands. "Actually, Touko refuses to talk to Sa-chan." He said. Yumi found herself wanting to shudder at the use of Suguru's old name for the woman, but stifled to reaction as best she could. "It would seem that Touko quite despises her for… well..." He waved towards Yumi with his hand. "You know."

"I didn't know that." Yumi admitted, thinking of her petite soeur. "She never let me know about how she really felt about what happened. It's one of the only things we never really talk about." She stopped talking, a sudden upsetting feeling crawling down her spine. There were, in fact, a few things she and the younger woman never really talked about together. Some things that happened they ignore for both their friendship, as well as their soeur relationship. Some things that Yumi had no real idea what Touko thought or how she felt about, despite their closeness. That realization made Yumi's stomach twist painfully.

"I imagine she doesn't want to add extra stress to your lives." Suguru suggested, sensing the comfort level of the topic and trying to alleviate it. "Anyway, it is true I do make an effort to keep in contact with most people I meet, if not only for business reasons. Sa-chan and I…" He hesitated, choosing his words as he eyed Yumi from across the table. "While we are not engaged anymore, we still keep in contact from time to time."

Yumi nodded, taking another sip of water to settle her still-full stomach. She started this conversation, Suguru did not. That meant she had to finish it… without losing her lunch. "Alright." She croaked as she emptied her glass and set it back down on the table. "So… how is she?"

"Before I answer anything, I have to ask you." Suguru said seriously, keeping a steady gaze on Yumi. "Why do you want to know now?"

Yumi sat there for a long time, a million reasons floating through her thoughts. Why  _did_ she want to know? Why now and not years ago? Was it because she thought enough time had passed? Was it because she was worried? Because she thought Sachiko should be well over her and therefore the knowledge would give Yumi some kind of closure? If so, why did she wait so long to ask? Surely such information would have helped earlier in life. Was it because of Suguru? Because of the good atmosphere he and Yumi seemed to have now, surprisingly after six years of awkward meetings and stiff formal conversations?

Summoning up the will to speak, Yumi set her jaw and placed her hands on the table, her fingers laced together tightly. "I think…" She whispered. "It's because I need to know if she if happy." She looked up to find Suguru's dark blue eyes staring back at her. "I hate her, Suguru. I hate her as much now as I did back then. But, as much as I hate Onee-sama, I still want her to be happy. I need to know that she is happy living in England." She paused, looking away from the man. "If I know she is happy… then maybe I can be too."

She peered at Suguru out of the corner of her eye, and watched him as he digested her words. After a few quiet moments, he sighed. "I understand what you want to say." He said and relaxed his shoulders. "If that is indeed the case, I will answer your questions."

"Thank you." Yumi replied the man stiffly, turning back to fully face him. "So… how is she?" She braced herself for the worst.

"She is doing well, actually." Suguru said in a suddenly conversational tone. "She is quite busy, of course, being the head of the United Kingdom branch of the Ogasawara Group. But, she is healthy and keeping active."

"Good." Yumi said, nodding slowly. Her stomach flipped a little, but it was a manageable discomfort. "It must have been difficult for her at the beginning. How did she manage that?" She was, of course, referring to how a nineteen year-old Japanese girl, just finished with her freshmen year in college, was able to go over to a new country and pick up the reigns of an entire country's branch of a power company such as the Ogasawara Group. Even nine years later, Yumi still had a hard time believing that actually happened.

Suguru laughed softly, his soft, dulcet voice rang through Yumi's ears. "It was challenging at first, apparently. Many of the executives at that end didn't really… agree… with the decisions made. There were some professional disagreements had at the time and just as many—" He paused for a moment, pursing his lips. "People encouraged to leave, I suppose one could say. In the end, Sa-chan kept the position as head of that branch and transferred to the Business School in the University of London."

Yumi let a low whistle slip past her lips. "Even I have heard of that school. Isn't that one of the best business schools in the world?" So... London; she finally knew where Sachiko lived. Not that it mattered, anyway.

"Fourth behind IMB, Insead, and SDA." Suguru nodded. "Though you with your Master of Arts from Geidai is nothing to be disappointed in."

Yumi shrugged, willing herself not to blush at the comment. It was difficult; the Kashiwagi heir rarely gave out compliments. "The only reason I pushed for the MA was because Touko practically forced me to." She shook her head. "Anyway, so she graduated?"

"With a Master of Business degree from London, yes." Suguru continued. "Since then, she had effortlessly handled all aspects of running the United Kingdom branch of the Ogasawara Group."

"Good for her." Yumi muttered with no small amount of sarcasm. The Ogasawara heiress never had any problems handling anything… and that includes breaking up with Yumi all those years ago. It only made sense that the woman also had little issue gaining control of an entire company in just a few years. "It's good to know that she still hasn't lost her touch."

"Yes." Suguru said thoughtfully, rubbing his chin with his hand. "It is."

"And how is she doing… in her personal life?" Yumi asked, lowering her eyes to the table.

"Personal life?" Suguru echoed from across the table. "By that you mean…?"

"Is she—you know…" Yumi stopped to chew at her lip. "Is she dating anyone?"

"Ah." Suguru said slowly in understanding. Having the sense to keep his face neutral, he reached out to lace his fingers around his glass of water. "Is it important?"

Yumi considered that for a moment. Was it important? Did it really matter to her whether or not her old soeur and girlfriend was seeing someone else? It had been nine years, so by all rights, she and the woman had been over with a long time ago. So what did it matter if Sachiko had a new girlfriend… or boyfriend… or even a husband. For all Yumi knew, the woman could have an eight year old son or daughter by now. So really, what did it matter?

It mattered because it was Sachiko Ogasawara. It mattered because she was Yumi's Onee-sama. It would always matter in some small way.

"Yes, it is." Yumi said decidedly. "It's important to me." She unblinkingly looked at Suguru, matching his sharp gaze with a stern one of her own. She had to know. She had to get past this shadow that loomed over her like a mountain, threatening to forever stand in her way. If she knew, then she knew she could get past it. Maybe she could move on.

"Very well." Suguru nodded curtly, and cleared his throat. "Truthfully, I do not know for sure. She doesn't see fit to tell me about her personal relationships. She never has." He shrugged with his hands, a small, wistful smile playing about his lips. He then grew more serious. "But, I have heard with my sources… that is, down the business grapevine, that she is involved with someone."

Yumi immediately suppressed another urge to throw up her lunch. The sick feeling travelled up from her stomach, up through her chest and rested behind her face. She immediately recognized the intense urge to cry. "Involved with someone?" She asked quietly. Her mouth felt clumsy and unfamiliar- her tongue cottony and fat. Of course she was involved with someone. Someone like Sachiko Ogasawara was always going to be involved with someone. It was pre-ordained to be like that. "How so?"

Suguru watched her carefully, his eyes missing nothing in Yumi's face. "I do not know the details. I only know that she and the other have been involved, whether romantically or professionally, for quite some time. I also don't know if the person in male or female. I do know that she is still unmarried, though. I have garnered that much from her during our recent emails as well as certain business sources."

"I see." Yumi forced out through numb lips. "I find it hard to imagine her being romantically involved with a man, though."

"You know just as well as I do, Yumi," Suguru said, his tone carrying a distinct mix of distain and bitterness. "That 'romance' has little to do in the world of business. In the grand scheme of things, people like Sa-chan and I are pawns to do what our families want us to do."

Yumi looked up to level a tired stare at the man. "What about you, then?" She asked bitterly. Suguru raised an eyebrow at the question, giving Yumi the impression that he didn't quite understand where Yumi was coming from. "You clearly didn't care about what your family thought, or you wouldn't have—" She stopped herself just in time. She had almost said something she would have regretted... something the both of them would have regretted.

But, the damage had been done. From the look that was now etched on the Kashiwagi heir's face, one of disappointment and discomfort, Yumi knew that their friendly conversation was over.

Suguru opened his mouth and started to speak. "Yumi, I—"

"Take me home." Yumi cut him off, her voice suddenly cold. "Please." She added, almost as an afterthought. Suguru looked as though he was going to decline and continue their conversation, but after a few moments, he nodded.

"As you wish." He said and turned to call for the nearest waiter.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 4**

Suguru drove his blood-red sports car up to Yumi's house and coasted to a slow crawl. Yumi only lurched a little when the car stopped fully at the top of her driveway. The woman immediately grabbed for her purse and unbuckled her seatbelt. Not saying a word, she opened the passenger-side door and leaned over to exit the car. As she was halfway up, a sudden force pulled her to a stop. She looked back to see Suguru holding her hand from his side of the car.

"Let me go." Yumi said, her voice hard. "I have work to do."

"Yumi." His voice was soft and quiet, barely audible from the idling of the car's engine. "Please do not be angry."

Yumi wrenched her hand from the man's grip, wincing only slightly as it slapped against the car door. She immediately felt her hand begin to throb. "What do you know about being angry!?" She hissed at him. "You weren't abandoned by the person you loved! You weren't left alone while she went gallivanting off to a new country to start a relationship with someone nobody knows! You didn't get your hopes crushed, only to have them built up by someone else and have them ripped away from you all over again!" She took a short, shallow breath. "You weren't pitied by the only person I felt that could understand me! You don't know about any of that, do you, Suguru Kashiwagi _-sama_?!" She had the guilty satisfaction of seeing the man's face wince, but she was too angry to really care.

"Yumi," Suguru said, his eyes boring into Yumi's. "I never meant to pity you. I only wanted you to be happy."

"But you did!" Yumi screamed at him from outside the car. "I told you six years ago, Suguru: I do not need your pity! I never wanted it!"

With that, she slammed the car door shut and turned on her heel, walking back to the front door of her house. She fumbled with her keys, tears slightly stinging at her eyes, and finally managed to unlock her door after a few clumsy attempts.

Yumi entered her house and shut the door, barely managing to not look at Suguru's car before firmly closing and locking it. Not bothering to take off her shoes or coat, she slowly walked down the hallway and entered her bedroom, flicking on the light as she entered the quiet room. She winced as the light stung at her tear-filled eyes, and took a few steps towards the center of the room.

She then stood still. For a long time she stood there, simply breathing through her nose, her eyes shut and her lips pressed tightly together. So many thoughts were flying through her head, it was difficult to think of any in particular. Sachiko... Suguru... Touko... England... Lillian Academy... Love... Hate... all of these thoughts floated around like flower petals in a gust of wind, making it difficult to grasp at any at all.

Sachiko was gone. She was gone and involved with someone else. She was happy. That should be a good thing, if not a great thing. Yumi should be happy. She should be pleased that the woman she loved so much had moved on and was living her own life away from Yumi. It was all she ever wanted for the Ogasawara heiress.

But Yumi wasn't happy. Not at all. Sachiko was gone, and she happy with someone else. She had left Yumi alone... she had left her alone because she wasn't happy with Yumi. Yumi wasn't what Sachiko wanted. She wasn't- she wasn't-

 _Yumi wasn't good enough for her_.

Yumi's exhaled sharply through her nose. Her stomach twisted painfully. She balled her hands tightly into fists at her sides. The thought of Yumi not being good enough brought back an old, half-forgotten feeling that Yumi barely registered in her mind. It seemed familiar, but alien at the same time. Yumi distantly felt herself try to remember what it was.

And then there was Suguru Kashiwagi. He was still the same. He said words to make Yumi feel better about Sachiko. He wanted to make her feel better on the outside... but he hadn't changed at all. He still felt sorry for her. He still felt as though Yumi was something sad, in need of protection. He still- he still-

_He pitied Yumi. He didn't really care about her. You can't care about something you pity._

Yumi felt her legs buckle underneath her, and collapsed to the floor with a gasp. At once, her tears sprang forth and she cried. She held her arms around her body and she cried. She cried for a long time, her eyes clamped shut and her legs pinned underneath her. She cried for Sachiko. She cried for Suguru. She cried for herself. She cried for anything she could think of. She cried because she didn't know what to cry for.

She cried because she could.

Eventually Yumi noticed that her tears had stopped, and she sat up on her legs, breathing heavily. She was tired, she noticed. There was still light leaking in through her closed curtains, so it must have still been daytime. Slowly, she scanned her eyes around her bedroom to locate her wall-clock, only to have her vision fall over the bulletin board over her bed full of pictures.

In total, as Yumi took them all and saw them nearly every day, there were more than two-dozen different pictures littering the space above her bed. Each picture had different people in a different place at a different time. There were some from her high school days, some from university, but most were from after she graduated and started to put her life back together. Coincidentally, that was the time Yumi had been most comfortable with to take pictures. As she scanned her tired, tear-stung eyes over the photographs, she looked for one in particular.

She found it. A picture taken when Yumi was twenty-one years old. She was wearing a Tokyo University for the Arts sweatshirt, and smiling shyly beside another person. The other, a taller, more-physically impressive figure, was casually-dressed Suguru Kashiwagi. The two of them were standing beside each other, both leaning inward to have a picture taken of the two of them. The look on Suguru's face was calm, cool and controlled; the same he always wore. But, there was also another aspect to his expression; one that Yumi knew from seeing it so much. It was one of comfort, and familiarity.

He was comfortable around Yumi. He was familiar with her. And from the shy, somewhat relaxed expression Yumi radiated, it was clear that Yumi felt the same way.

As she focused on the picture, Yumi felt a burning in her stomach. She hated that picture. She had hated it for years. She always wanted to get rid of it, but never had summoned up the willpower to. Now was the chance.

Baring her teeth, Yumi dashed to her bed and climbed onto it. She reached out, snatching the target photograph from the bulletin board. For a few short moments, she stared at it. She looked into her own eyes... the eyes of a twenty-one year old girl... the eyes of one who was just getting back onto her feet with the help of a trusted friend when the love of her life ripped her heart out. She looked at Suguru's eyes. She looked at his cool, dark-blue eyes. The eyes that pitied her… the eyes that always pitied her. Yumi always hated those eyes.

She tore the picture in half.

With a stifled cry, she tore the remains of the picture again, ripping them into smaller pieces. She tore them again and again, until the pieces were too small for her to tear anymore. When she couldn't rip up the pieces any smaller, she threw the fragments away behind her. Her eyes travelled back to the wall full of pictures again, and she spotted another picture of Suguru. This one had him and Yumi in a group picture with everyone from high school. Clenching her teeth together, she snatched the picture off the wall and jumped off her bed, dashing to her desk and rummaging through the top drawer. After a moment she found a pair of scissors and, without hesitation, cut Suguru out of the photograph. She dropped the remains of the picture on her desk and picked up the piece with Suguru.

"Stop looking at me like that." She whispered, her voice shaking with anger as she glared at the picture of the man. "Stop pitying me. I hate it!" Her muscles tensed as she ripped the picture fragment in half. Throwing the pieces away, she whirled around, her blood pumping in her ears. Her eyes swiveled, looking for something…  _anything_  to douse the fire in her stomach. She focused on a small box at the table beside her bed. At once, she knew what she had to do.

She all but leapt at the box and wrenched it open, looking down at the pictures and memories contained within. So many pictures, so many memories of Sachiko Ogasawara, lay in her hands… tempting her… taunting her. They reminded her of times past; times that were no longer able to be enjoyed or reminisced fondly about. They were gone, replaced by sick feelings and thoughts of abandonment.

They had to be destroyed.

Yumi picked up one picture. This one had Yumi and Sachiko holding hands on a bench in the park. They had asked a passerby to help them take the picture. He had thought they were sisters. Well, he had been half right.

Yumi tore it in half.

She took out another picture. This one had Yumi and Sachiko's face, taken as a close up. Sachiko had held the camera out at arm's length and snapped the photo, catching Yumi by surprise.

Yumi ripped it into shreds.

She turned the box upside down, watching as all her photos rained down on her bed. A few caught her eye as they lay face-up at her. One of Yumi and Sachiko… the younger girl sporting a light blush. Another of Sachiko, licking an ice cream cone and looking at the camera. Another of Yumi pulling Sachiko into the camera frame from elsewhere, giving the older girl a surprised look.

She shredded them all apart with her bare hands, her eyes stinging with tears.

Finally, she picked up the last remaining picture. It had Yumi, looking flustered and embarrassed in her old Lillian Academy Uniform. Sachiko was standing opposite of her, straightening Yumi's uniform on that day they had first met. Yumi held the picture up with both hands, staring at it with blurry eyes and her chest heaving. This picture had started their relationship as acquaintances, friends, soeurs, and finally lovers. This picture had started everything. This one picture had been the catalyst for the most important time in Yumi's life, for better or for worse. As long as she kept it… Yumi would never be free of Sachiko.

Yumi gripped the picture with her fingers, her hands trembling with anger. She shut her eyes as tightly as she could, willing herself to keep steady. She was so close… so close to being free… she could feel it. She could hear it in the beating of her heart in her ears. She could taste it in the saliva on her tongue. She could smell it in the dust of the pictures she destroyed. It was so near…

She felt the picture tear a small bit, and as soon as her fingers started to move, her throat burned with the taste of bile. Dropping the picture and holding her hand to her mouth, Yumi leapt off the bed and dashed to the bathroom, barely managing to slap on the light before throwing her head into the toilet.

Yumi's throat, nose and mouth burned as her lunch made another appearance, causing her to heave mouthful after mouthful of partially-digested food mixed with stomach acid into the toilet. The pain of vomiting was only made worse by the shame and self-hatred at not being able to destroy that one little picture.

Soon, after she was sure that her stomach had finished emptying itself, Yumi stumbled over to the bathroom sink and, looking into the mirror, and was met by the same brown-eyed woman she saw every time she looked into it. Her eyes were tired and bloodshot. Her face was pale and sickly. Her hair was askew. Yumi could barely recognize the woman as her own reflection. But what made it even worse… worse than feeling the hate and the disappointment directed at herself… was the look of pity the woman in the mirror stared at her with.

"Stop it." Yumi hissed through gritted teeth. "Stop pitying me." The look didn't stop. If anything, the woman's look grew more intense. "I said stop it! I don't want to see it anymore!" Yumi slapped her hands on the bathroom counter, ignoring the slight sting of pain that shot through her palms. "She is happy! She doesn't need or want me anymore! I don't need her! I can be happy on my own!" She slammed her hands down on the counter with each sentence, her force growing with each strike. "I don't care about not being good enough for her! I don't need Suguru's pity! I don't need everyone to worry about me every fucking day! I don't need Touko to—" She clenched her hands into fists, the pain shooting through them barely registering in her mind. "I don't need her to feel guilty about me!" She glared at the woman, her jaw set at tightly as she could manage. "So stop looking at me like that."

The woman seemed to consider that. But then, after a long moment, she shook her head.

"I said stop it!" Yumi shrieked, clenching her eyes shut and throwing a tightly-balled fist at the woman. The hit landed directly on her cheek, and Yumi distantly felt her arm jolt to a stop. After a few seconds, Yumi, opened her eyes and looked at the mirror. It had splintered from the point her hand had struck it, causing more than a dozen cracks to spread out from the impact and create a design like a spider web. Yumi found the woman staring back at her, from a dozen different angles. But this time, her look of pity was gone- in its place was confusion and dizziness.

Slowly Yumi wandered out of the bathroom, her breathing shallow and her eyes wandering. Her hand swarmed with pain, giving her the sensation as though countless ants were crawling over it. How had that happened? What was the itching sensation she felt? She reached over to scratch at it, but it only got worse. It felt so familiar to her. It was almost as if she had felt it before… at another time. But it hardly seemed important at that moment.

Yumi's vision started to blur as her breaths came faster and shorter. The different parts of her bedroom began to blend together as though it was a painter's canvas.

 _Huh... now that's a funny thought..._  Yumi heard her own voice whisper in her head.

A painter's canvas. Who did Yumi know that painted? Suguru? Hah. No way. The man would never have the patience for it. Touko? Yumi had no doubts she could, if she ever put forth the effort. But no, she had never known the younger woman to paint.

Oh… that's right… That woman Yumi had met recently painted. What was her name? Sachiko? Haha—no. Sachiko was her Onee-sama's name. What a silly thought. Sachiko was long gone and never coming back. She had a boyfriend or girlfriend or whatever now. Sachiko was gone… Suguru didn't care about Yumi... the only people Yumi had now were Touko and her friends. She only had them to rely on, just like always.

Oh yea… that woman's name was Maya. Maybe Yumi could rely on her a little bit, too. A little bit shouldn't hurt. If she did, maybe Yumi could forget all about Sachiko and Suguru.

She could forget everything bad... and replace them with new, happy thoughts.

Slowly, as the pain in her hand began to numb and her vision faded away, Yumi's distantly remembered that she left her coat in Suguru's car.

0 – 0 – 0

**_From the Diary of Yumi Fukuzawa: Entry 7_ **

_There are a lot of things about Suguru Kashiwagi I will never tell anyone. Some things are small… unimportant. Things like he prefers his eggs over-easy. Or that he has a twitch in his left hand when he is impatient. Some things are slightly more embarrassing. Did you know he snores occasionally? Not loudly, but its loud enough to notice... and only when he sleeps on his back. If you give him a push then he'll turn on his side and stop. Things like that, while aren't important, I will still keep a secret. It's just common courtesy, isn't it?_

_Some things, though, I will never tell anyone- common courtesy or not. Not Shimako-san... not Rei-sama or Yoshino-san... not my parents... not even Touko. Some things are a secret because of the weight they carry. The weight of a secret between two people is heavier, more important, than one._

_There, now that that's out of the way..._

_Suguru first visited me the day after Onee-sama left the country. The first time was short- only a few minutes. He came long enough to deliver a bouquet of flowers (lilies) surprising me, Touko, Yoshino-san and Shimako-san but making my mother and father extremely pleased, and say he will visit me as often as he could manage. He then left, almost as quickly as he had come. We were all confused at his behavior, but took it at face value. At least he cared enough to visit and give me his regards._

_Little did I know that he would be true to his word. He started visiting me at my home at least once a week. It was a little odd at first, having him around so often. But, considering Touko's all-but moving into my room for the summer, it was not nearly strange enough to call attention to. During the visits, he was extremely polite, kind, caring, and helpful._

_I was extremely wary of Suguru at first. Not because I had not always held him in high regard, or because he was a man... but because he was Onee-sama's ex-fiancé. I remember I kept thinking that this had to be some sort of trick. Or perhaps that Onee-sama had bade him to keep an eye on me and make sure I was not doing anything stupid._

_Eventually, thanks in part to Touko's positive behavior at the man's intervention in my life, I began to expect him at times... even look forward to his visits. He would come and talk with Touko and I and, when I was feeling up to it, he would take the two of us out in his car and go different places. Somewhere between the start of summer and the end and the start of my university life, I began to actually enjoy his company._

_With the end of summer came a difficult transition. I would be moving out of my home and attending Tokyo University of the Arts. Shimako-san and Yoshino-san would be going their own separate ways to their own schools (but, luckily, they would be staying close by in Tokyo) and Touko would be going back to Lillian as the new Rosa Chinensis. I would be going to a new school... a new environment... and I would be alone._

_The thought frightened me greater than anybody truly realized. I tried hard to not let people know how afraid I actually was but, because of my now-famous ability to 'allow' my face to show my feelings, somehow they already knew. Out of everyone that promised to visit me when they had the chance, the one that surprised me the most was Suguru._

_And visit me often he did._

_I had no idea why at first, but Suguru found opportunities during the week to visit me a shocking amount of times. He had his own school to go to and a family to spend time with... but even with multiple different obligations he still came to visit me, picking me up from my dorm or after classes to spent time together. He and I would go eat at different places, go to museums and parks just to waste time, and basically do whatever either of us wanted to do. It was, honestly, a much-needed distraction in my life that I desperately needed._

_After a few long months of seeing more of the man than I ever had during my time with Onee-sama, I began to slowly reconsider my views on how I thought about Suguru._

_I was sexually attracted to women. I knew that. My family knew that. All my friends knew it. Sei-sama was extremely pleased when I had finally 'broken the news', as they called it, to everyone. What made it all the more humbling was that no one minded._

_I also knew that Suguru liked men. He told me himself not long after we began to spend more time together. I didn't mind either. If anything, I found that preferable to him liking women. With how he was, I could relax and actually enjoy myself without having to worry. He had said the same to me. Though... what he would have to 'worry' about, I never really could figure out. So, in effect, we found each other's company comfortable and we could relax together._

_I was gay... so was he. There was never any kind of sexual attraction between the two of us. But, still, surprisingly enough, there was romance there. He would never attract me in the way Onee-sama did; and I could never attract him in the way men could. It should never have worked between us. Our relationship was never based on sex and we never even bothered with it. But, in the end, we are alright with what we had. We were happy being close to one another._

_Did I love him? Yes, in a way, I did love him. Love comes in all kinds of shapes and colors, just like art. You can take a picture that you know and accept as 'love' and turn it upside down and no longer recognize it for what it is. But, if you are open enough to keep looking for it from a different angle... you can definitely still find it._

_I loved Suguru Kashiwagi._

_I was twenty-one years old and well into my third year of undergraduate study. We had been dating for almost two years... though we kept the entire thing a secret from Touko as well as everyone else. Doing it that way just made it somewhat simpler to deal with until the time was right. To all outwards appearances, we were just very close friends to them._

_One evening, Suguru took me out to have dinner together. It was familiar, safe, and made me comfortable. I had just put my life back together in some strange way with Suguru's and everyone's help. I didn't need Sachiko to live. I had my friends and family. I had Suguru._ _I could feel that everything would be alright now_ _._

_Then Suguru Kashiwagi asked me to marry him._

_Hearing him ask that from across the dinner table, over the dim buzz of ambient conversation from the other guests in the restaurant, made me pause. I had been reaching for my glass of wine when I froze and stared, wide-eyed, at a twenty-three year old Suguru Kashiwagi looking back at me._

_"What?" I asked, not sure if I heard correctly._

_"I asked you if you would marry me." He repeated, his face serious and his eyes searching mine. He leaned forward and grasped my hand with his. I felt something drop from his hand into mine and he pulled away, leaving a ring in my palm. I stared at the piece of jewelry for some time, feeling a mix of shock, surprise and anxiety tingle through my entire body._

_I can still remember that feeling now, even as I am writing about it years later._

_"Marry?" I echoed stupidly. Honestly, I had not expected the man to do anything like this, and I could not come back with anything coherent. It was just too unexpected._

_"Yumi," Suguru said, using the familiar way he used to address me. Ever since he and I began our mutual relationship, he had always used that way to talk to me. "I know our relationship is... not a traditional one." He said, choosing his words carefully. "But I don't care about that. I am comfortable with you, and I feel that you are as well. I am well aware of my faults, as a man and as a person; you have told me time and time again, as it happens." He added with a light smile. "But I hope you can overlook them and accept me for what I am."_

_I broke my trance with the ring... and trust me it was difficult— that thing was a monster... and looked up at Suguru. I licked my lips, using the time it took wetting them to think, and finally said the first thing that came to mind. "What about Onee-sama?" I asked, feeling my tongue clumsily roll over the word as it formed in my mouth._

_Suguru nodded and straightened. "It has been over between she and I ever since her family made the decision to send her to England." He said decidedly. "Sa-chan and I would have been a good match professionally; she and I were alike in that way. But with you, there is something else."_

_"Something else?"_

_Suguru stared at me for a long while, as if thinking about the best way to say what he wanted. He always took his time with things like that, so I waited. Finally, he sighed. "We are a better match." He said. "She and I were alike, that is true. But I am comfortable with you. You make me happy... relaxed. You are like a breath of fresh air in a stifling room."_

_"I see." I said, blushing lightly. Well, it was good to know I was better than Onee-sama in some ways._

_"Yumi, ever since Sa-chan left I know you have felt alone." Suguru leaned forward, staring hard into my eyes. "It was devastating for you. I could feel it. I can still feel it. You tell everyone you are feeling better, but I know you far too well. You still miss her."_

_I broke my eye contact with Suguru and sighed. "Of course I miss her, Suguru. I always will." I didn't really want to talk about Onee-sama right then. Suguru had proposed to me; this was supposed to be about him and me. All this talk about the woman who left me was getting me depressed. I was sorry I brought it up._

_Though... looking back, I am glad I did._

_"Then, that's the best part." I heard Suguru say. I looked back at him, my eyebrows raised. "If you and I marry, we are free to be with whoever we want."_

_I blinked, feeling a sudden confusion at his words. "What do you mean?" I asked slowly._

_"I mean, we can move to England. If you and I were to marry, you can have any job you want anywhere in the world. When you graduate, you can get a placement in England. There are many different options open to you if you are married into my family."_

_I felt my cheek twitch as I digested his words. He couldn't have possibly meant to say-_

_"To what end?" I asked, my voice growing colder._

_It was Suguru's turn to blink in confusion. "So you can be together with Sa-chan." He said. "If you are married to me, there will be nothing to keep you from being with her. Naturally, you would be free to be with whoever you want to be."_

_Never in my life, not as far back as I could remember, had I ever hit anyone. I was always afraid to. Whether because I was scared to be hit in retaliation, or because I would hurt myself in the process. I had always just been too scared of the consequences and therefore never brought myself to do the violent action. But the moment I heard those words from Suguru, and felt the white-hot pain searing in my chest, I couldn't stop myself._

_My right hand had crossed to the left side of his face before I could even register it had even connected with his cheek. My palm hadn't even started hurting until I had brought my hand to cradle it in my left hand._

_Damn… let me tell you: slapping people really hurts like Hell._

_Apparently, from the shocked look on Suguru's face, being on the receiving end hurt just as much, if not more._

_"How dare you." I hissed as angrily as I could manage. "How dare you!"_

_Suguru brought his hand up to his cheek and rubbed at it gingerly. After a moment, his eyes wandered over to mine. "Yumi-"_

_"What makes you think that I would be happy with anything you just said?" I said acidly. "Marrying you just so I would be free to go after Onee-sama?! What the fuck makes you think that would be a good idea? What the fuck are you thinking?" Suguru made a movement, as if to speak, but I cut him off with a wave of my hand. "On second thought, don't even tell me what you were thinking! I don't want to know! All I need YOU to know, Suguru Kashiwag-kun, is that I do not need Onee-sama! She is gone! She didn't want me, so I don't want her!" I took a deep breath, feeling a shiver as anger flooded through my body. "What makes you think I want to be with her anymore!?" I glared at the man, waiting for some sort of response. When moments passed by with nothing from him, during which time I was deftly away the entire restaurant was watching this debacle unfold, I slapped my hands on the table. "Speak!" I screamed._

_Suguru blinked, his face noticeably paler. In the back of my mind, I felt a little proud that I successfully scared the usually unflappable Suguru Kashiwagi. He opened his mouth, closed it, and then opened it again. "Yumi, I just know how hurt you were when she first left. You are much better now, but I still remember. You were inconsolable for the longest time. You may not like to hear it but…" He hesitated. "I felt as though I had to do something."_

_I reeled back, a horrible thought occurring to me. "You felt sorry for me?" I gasped, my hand flying up to my mouth. Immediately, Suguru held his hands out in front of him._

_"At first, I did. But then I began to enjoy my time with you. I never lied when I said I am happy being with you."_

_"So then, why?" I asked. "Why do you think I still want to be with her? Why do you care about that?"_

_"Because…" Suguru paused, his face contorting with thought. "I feel as though you won't be truly happy without her. I just feel as though you will never be the same if she isn't near you."_

_Standing there in the middle of our favorite restaurant, I thought about his words. He wanted me to get back together with Onee-sama. He wanted me to be happy. He felt sorry for me, and he wanted to help me by using his resources to try and turn my life around. He didn't think I was happy enough with him. He thought I needed Onee-sama to be happy… that I wasn't content how I was. He didn't think I could by happy on my own. He thought that Yumi Fukuzawa wasn't capable. He thought—_

_"You pity me…" I realized, my eyes slowly returning towards his. When I met his gaze, he shifted his eyes downward in avoidance. "That's it, isn't it? You pity me. You think I am not good enough of a person to get by without her."_

_"That's not what I mean." He said sternly, a hint of his old calmness returning to his voice._

_"But you do pity me, Suguru!" I returned harshly. "You felt sorry for me then… and you still do now! All this time, after all we have been through… you still don't think of me as anything else that Sachiko's petite soeur!" His silence was enough of an answer for me. I clenched my hand tightly, feeling the sharp bite of the ring he gave me dig into my palm. "Remember this, Suguru Kashiwagi: I am not some mewling kitten that cannot live without Sachiko Ogasawara." I picked up my purse from the table and, as slowly and gently as I could, placed the ring between the two of us. "Find someone else to pity, Suguru." I whispered, my voice breaking. I gave him one last look, my lips trembling as I took in his blank visage, and walked out of the restaurant._

_My life took a turn for the worse after Suguru and I 'broke up'. Onee-sama leaving was bad enough. I had felt my life was over after that. But, with the help of Suguru, as well as all my friends, I had built my life carefully back up to something livable. But once he was out of the picture, and the memories and feelings that had been threatening to come back from when Onee-sama left surged to the surface more powerful than ever, everything came slowly crashing down._

_With Onee-sama, I was left with feelings of abandonment and uselessness. I felt that she didn't want me, didn't need me, and I didn't think I was good enough for her. If she really wanted me and needed me, she would have taken me with her, right?_

_When Suguru and I broke up, it was because he pitied me, thinking that I needed Sachiko to truly be happy. I was something poor… something to feel sorry for. A baby in need of someone to coddle it, to protect it and to keep it from harm._

_But that wasn't true. Suguru misunderstood that one aspect about me. I could stand on my own. I didn't need Onee-sama to live. I wasn't something to baby- to protect. I wanted to live. I wanted to grow. I wanted to get over my weakness and my need for Onee-sama._

_I just… I needed a little help doing it._

_But it wasn't meant to be. Instead of help, I received pity and shattered hopes. I had almost climbed to the top of the mountain, only to be pushed back down lower than ever before._

_The most hurtful thing… the secret I will keep to myself for as long as I live… is if Suguru had been serious… if he had honestly wanted to marry me, regardless of our sexual preferences and past feelings... if he had been willing to look past my own faults and weaknesses…_

_I would have said yes._

0 - 0 - 0

**Part 5**

A strange sensation was the first thing that Yumi felt as her mind climbed its way back up to consciousness. It wasn't a very powerful sensation, but it was strange. It came from the area around her hip and caused her to stir. As she rolled her body around and felt a firm, slightly scratchy surface underneath her, it occurred to her that she was on the floor of her bedroom.

She slowly opened her eyes and squinted slightly, taking in the light from her bedroom fluorescent light directly above her. Just as she started to search her mind for why exactly she was on the floor of her bedroom, the strange feeling came again. It buzzed at her hip lightly, making Yumi jerk in surprise and reach her hand over to find whatever it was that was-

"Ahh!" Yumi cried as she tried moving her hand. Her whole body tensed in response to a flash of pain that shot up her arm from her hand. She looked down at her right hand and gasped when she saw it covered in dried bits of blood and, strangely enough, what looked like small cuts in the skin.

Suddenly, in a burst of recollection, she remembered what had happened. Yumi had passed out after coming back from seeing Suguru Kashiwagi. She couldn't really remember all the details of what happened exactly, but from the bits and pieces she could remember, and the lacerations covering her knuckles, she had a vague idea.

Her hip buzzed again, startling Yumi into reaching for the area with her left hand. It was an awkward motion, but it only took a few moments for Yumi to find what was making the sound.

Her phone.

Yumi pulled the device out of her back pocket, no mean trick without moving her injured hand around much, and set her head back down on the floor with a groan. She pressed the phone to her ear and answered it. "Touko?" She asked, guessing at the person actually calling her. The voice that came back was not Touko's.

"Ah?" A surprised, somewhat hesitant voice breathed into Yumi's ear. "N-no. I, uh... Yumi-san?"

Yumi lay there, staring up at the ceiling for a long moment, her mind trying to make sense of the voice. She sounded exactly like she remembered... exactly like what she  _should_  sound like, nine years after hearing her voice. But, even as the thought rolled over in her mind, Yumi knew who it really was. "Maya-san?" She asked again, her voice dry and raspy.

The other was quiet for a second, and then came back, slightly relieved. "Yes, it is me. I'm sorry, were you expecting another call?"

"No..." Yumi repled. She cleared her throat and took a deep, slow breath. "Sorry, you just surprised me a little."

"Oh." Maya said, her tone deflating slightly. "Is this a bad time?"

Yumi shook her head, her hair splaying out on the floor around her head with the action. "No, its fine." She said. She tried to flex her injured hand, and winced lightly in response. "I need the distraction, actually."

"Are you working?"

Yumi actually laughed; a raspy, choked laugh… but a laugh nonetheless. "I was earlier, but then I got distracted. What about you?"

Maya sighed into the phone, her voice coming in as an airy note into Yumi's ear. "I was until just a few minutes ago. I was getting nowhere and… well, I felt like talking to someone."

"And you decided to call me?" Yumi asked. She shut her eyes and grimaced to herself. She hadn't meant to sound accusing, and desperately hoped the older woman hadn't taken her words like that. Luckily, from the slightly embarrassed chuckle that came back through the phone, it seemed as though she hadn't.

"Is that weird?" She asked, giggling lightly.

"No, no…" Yumi soothed, ignoring the throb in her hand. Instead of focusing on that, she tried to turn her attention towards the voice in her ear. It was warm… friendly… familiar. "It's just… I was first on your list? What about your other friends?"

"Mmm." Maya hummed loudly, as if agreeing with the architect. "I could have. But, for some reason, I felt like talking to you." She laughed. "Sorry— that sounds kind of strange. What I meant to say was…" She trailed off, as if choosing her words. Yumi waited for a few quiet moments, wanting to hear her voice again. "You know what? I don't really know. I just wanted to talk to you."

Yumi smiled to herself, a warmth spreading through her body. She didn't know why suddenly made her so happy, but it did. It was as if the pain in her hand… the anger from earlier… the frustration at Sachiko and Suguru had never happened. Just a simple sentence from the woman—from that voice—was enough to take all the anxiety and negative feelings and bury them away where Yumi couldn't feel them.

It felt good.

"I wanted to talk to you too." Yumi said honestly. "In fact… are you free tomorrow? I could really, really use a coffee."

0 – 0 – 0

_End of chapter 8_


	9. Chapter 9

**The Princess and the Sparrow**

_**Interlude 2** _

0 - 0 - 0

**Interlude: Maya**

The inter-city bus coasted to a stop with a slight whine, jostling Maya as she made her way to the rear exit door of the vehicle. She waited until the door opened, the hydraulics hissing as the doors swung wide, and then hopped out of the bus into the chilly late January air.

Turning to see the bus drive off for a few moments, she then stepped fully up onto the sidewalk as a couple of older women passed her by, chatting quietly together. Maya watched the pair meander away for a few moments, and then reached into her bag, fishing around for her phone to check the time. It was a little after noon, giving her a good few minutes to leisurely make her way to her lunch-date with Yumi Fukuzawa.

Thinking of the young architectural designer brought a small smile to Maya's face as she kicked up her feet and began the short walk to the café the pair decided to meet at. It had only been about two weeks since she and Yumi met, but even so, there was something that made Maya feel as though the two were made to be good friends. As things were now, Maya could count the number of friends she had in Tokyo on one hand. So, the addition of Yumi to her 'friends list' was a welcome change to her life.

Yumi was polite, intelligent, and refined. She had good education and, from what Maya could tell, was a hard worker. She was, in Maya's opinion, the epitome of what a lady should be. Or, at least, what a lady with a  _proper_  upbringing should be.

Not to say that Maya herself hadn't had a proper upbringing; she had. Perhaps proper wasn't the right word to use. Perhaps a better example would be 'dignified' or 'high-class'. The woman even knew how to properly drink tea—a difficult and not-all-that-common activity, even among modern Japanese. Truly, Yumi Fukuzawa was a unique individual.

Maya rounded a corner and the front of the café came into view, bringing another, wider, smile to her lips as she slightly sped up her pace. She reached the front door and opened it, instinctively relaxing her shoulders as she stepped into the heated building. She shut the door behind her, the bells tied to the knob jingling as she let go. Lightly dusting off her coat, she cast her eyes around the room in hopes of finding her friend. Maya found her after only a second.

Yumi sat at the same table as their last time meeting each other. She sat in the same seat, almost in the same position as Maya remembered seeing her in the previous time they met. The younger woman had her chin held in her left hand, her other hand presumably dangling underneath the table, and was staring vacantly out the window to her left. Her light brown hair was tied up on the right side of her head and adorned with a purple ribbon, letting the rest of it fall down from the left side of her head and the top of her shoulders. She wore a red long-sleeved sweater, but anything else he woman wore couldn't been seen from where Maya stood.

Maya cleared her throat quietly and strode forward to Yumi's chosen table. When she got close, the other broke her gaze with the frosted window and looked up at the approaching figure. For a moment, as Maya walked up to the table, Yumi's face became taut and intense. But the somewhat fierce expression only lasted a spit second before being replaced by her usual friendly visage. Maya recalled vaguely that the same expression appeared on Yumi's face when they met before, as well as their first meeting. Maya had wondered at the time, and this instance as well, what the younger woman was thinking about right at that moment when she made such a serious face. But, as she stopped in front of the table and smiled down at Yumi, Maya inwardly shrugged it off. It was likely just a part of Yumi's personality.

"Good afternoon, Yumi-san." Maya greeted the younger woman with a warm smile. "I hope I didn't keep you waiting long."

"No, I just got here myself." Yumi replied, pulling an ear bud out of each ear. She reached down and pulled an MP3 player from her pocket, fiddling with it to turn it off. Maya wondered why she didn't notice the woman listening to music before, but instead chose to ask the more important token question.

"What are you listening to?" She asked, putting her bag down at the far end of the seat across from Yumi.

The brown-haired woman shrugged while stuffing the device, ear buds and all, into her bag. "Just the usual." She said wistfully. "Whatever is popular, I listen to. I often just follow the trends to keep up with the times."

Maya blinked, surprised. "Really?" She asked. "I'd have thought you would listen to something like Beethoven or Mozart." The woman's 'proper', and 'dignified' personality seemed to indicate so. Maya had a hard to imagining someone like Yumi Fukuzawa listening to J-pop, after all.

Yumi's lips twitched up into a smile and she cocked her head to the side, indicating to the MP3 player her bag. "Oh, I listen to them, as well. But I don't really love them." She shrugged with one shoulder. "My sister likes the classics. I just listen because she does."

"Fair enough." Maya agreed, somewhat surprised that Yumi had a sister. She filed the piece of information away in her memory and then half-turned towards the counter at the far end of the room. "Shall we go order, then?"

"After you." Yumi said, standing up with a slight grunt. Maya turned fully towards the counter and, with Yumi in tow, stood behind a couple of other customers waiting in the queue.

"Are you going to order tea again?" Maya asked, turning around to face the other.

Yumi exhaled softly in a short laugh. "No. I really need a coffee today." She craned her neck to look at the menu behind Maya. "A coffee and a sandwich. And a cookie... or two."

"Or three?" Maya giggled, holding her hand over her mouth.

Yumi joined her for a moment and then shook her head. "Nope. My limit is two almond cookies. I have to worry about fitting into my trousers, after all."

Maya sighed and nodded solemnly. "Yes. It is the curse of women everywhere." She said. "Blessed with stunning good looks, though cursed with a fickle metabolism."

"Truer words have never been spoken, Sagara-sensei." Yumi rolled her eyes. After a moment, she nodded towards the counter. Maya understood the gesture and stepped up to order alongside Yumi. Matching the slightly younger woman, Maya ordered a bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich for lunch. However, surprising herself a little, she ordered black tea leaves instead of her usual coffee. Her order caused Yumi to raise an eyebrow at her, making Maya flush a little behind her ears.

"I wanted to try the tea you got last time." Maya explained as the two of them paid for their purchase. "It looked nice."

Yumi shrugged, an almost invisible smirk playing about her lips, and the two sided over to the pick-up counter. After a short couple of minutes a barista placed two trays, each laden with a sandwich, a small plate of cookies, and their drinks, in front of them.

"After you." Maya said, quoting the younger woman with a grin.

Yumi blinked and looked down at her tray, a suddenly uncomfortable look appearing on her face. She didn't move for a few moments, and then her entire body seemed to deflate as she reached to pick up her tray. When she did, Maya noticed why the woman had hesitated in picking up her food.

"Yumi-san…" She started to say, but trailed off as she got a good look Yumi's hand.

Yumi's right hand was covered with bright white gauze. The long piece of fabric was bound with medical tape and wound around her hand, starting around her palm and ending at the middle of her fingers, binding her knuckles together. At first glance Maya couldn't really tell what kind of injury Yumi had suffered, but could instinctively tell that the woman had likely treated it herself. Though, even with the somewhat haphazard way it was treated, it was apparent that it was not just a small cut on her finger.

She had obviously been hesitant to pick up her food because the bandage made it difficult to hold anything with it. How her hand was bandaged essentially made all of her fingers, except for her thumb, useless. Nevertheless, Yumi carefully slid her tray off the counter with her good hand and attempted to balance the food using her injured hand, using her good hand to steady it.

"Ah! I'm sorry!" Maya exclaimed, a little louder than she meant to. "I didn't notice your hand was hurt before..." She stepped up to Yumi and held out her hands. "Here, let me carry it for you."

" _No_." Yumi said decidedly, her tone stern and leaving no room for discussion. Her eyes flashed up to Maya, and immediately softened. "Sorry… I mean: no, I can handle it. Thank you, Maya-san."

Maya nodded slowly, and retrieved her own tray of food, following behind Yumi at a slow walk until they reached their table. She watched the brown haired woman place her tray on the table, and then slide into her seat. Maya then followed suit, sitting down across from Yumi.

"Sorry," Maya said apologetically. "I didn't mean to assume..."

Yumi waved her uninjured hand in front of her. "Don't be sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you. I just prefer to do things myself."

"I understand." Maya said. "Are you alright?" She nodded her head towards Yumi's hand, indicating the woman's injury.

Yumi chuckled and lifted the hand up for Maya to see. It was tightly bound by the white bandages, but was clearly not uncomfortable-looking. "Yea, it's fine. Just a few small cuts around the fingers. It's just too bad that I'm right-handed." She laughed good-naturedly. "I'm going to have to take a couple days off until I can properly draw again."

Maya grimaced inwardly, knowing exactly what Yumi was doing. The woman was trying to make light of a potentially serious situation. A small cut was nothing serious; it could heal quickly and she could come out no worse for the wear. However, a large wound could be a lot worse. To an artist like Yumi or Maya, a damaged hand was just as bad as a leg injury to a career athlete.

"How did it happen?" Maya asked softly, reaching for the cup of hot water and bottle of tea leaves.

"I just broke a glass. Like I said – It's nothing serious." She said nonchalantly. "Really. It's just a few cuts."

"Alright." Maya said, accepting the woman's answer. "I hope your hand heals quickly."

"I do too…" Yumi sighed, picking up her cup of coffee. "I got the details for my new contract and I got a lot of work to do." She took a sip, and made an appreciative sound as she looked down into the cup. "And – oh my God this coffee is amazing!"

Maya laughed aloud, smiling again. "I know. I got that a few weeks ago." She dropped a spoonful of tealeaves into her cup and covered the steaming water with the lid. "Is that right? The tea, I mean."

"Yes. Just leave it like that for a few minutes until the leaves are stewed." Yumi explained. "You then crack the lid open a little, and sip the tea out through the opening between the cup and the lid."

"Don't the tealeaves fall out?" Maya asked, gagging slightly at the thought of swallowing tealeaves along with the tea.

"No. The opening is too small for the leaves to come out of."

"Ah. Cool."

Yumi giggled, hiding a smirk behind her cup as she took another sip of coffee. Maya raised an eyebrow towards the woman questioningly. "What?" She asked.

"Nothing, nothing." The other shook her head, her smirk still lingering on her lips. "I just… thought it was funny, how you said 'cool' just now."

Maya cocked her head to the side. "Do you say 'cool' in Tokyo? I thought it was fairly common."

"No, we do… it's just…" Yumi paused, a suddenly odd look passing over her face. She was silent for a few moments, and then shook her head, as if ridding herself of a thought. "Never mind. It's nothing."

"Alright..." Maya said slowly, matching Yumi's smirk. "In that case, tell me about your new project. You said you have a new contract?"

Yumi nodded, setting back down her cup. "Yea. I have to design a summer house for my client. A two story house, a couple acres of land… it's actually pretty easy, considering the freedom the man is giving my brother and I with the details."

"Sounds interesting." Maya said, and meant it. She had never been very good with the more technical aspects of art and design, but she could appreciate it all the same. "I am in the process of starting a new book, myself… Oh!" She said, and then straightened up, suddenly remembering that she had brought books for Yumi. "That reminds me, I have these for you."

She reached down into her bag and withdrew the pair of books she brought from her collection at home. These books were two of her own creations; her own two published works. Both she had spent a total of about one year each on, and each one she loved in different, yet equal ways.

Smiling, she placed them on the table and slid them over to Yumi. "Two copies of my books." She said. "I hope you like them." Yumi reached out and was about to pick one of them up when Maya placed her hand over it, effectively stopping the younger woman in mid-reach. "But… I would prefer it if you waited until you got home to read them…" She said, feeling her ears prickle uncomfortably. "It's kind of embarrassing, you know?"

Yumi's lips quirked up into a smile and she nodded. "Of course. I understand, Sagara-sensei." She said. Maya withdrew her hand and Yumi took the books, putting them into her bag. "I don't really like people going over my work in front of me either."

"It must be an artist thing." Maya agreed, giggling.

"It's alright, though. I can read them while cooking later. Or while I am cleaning the house." Yumi said, patting her now-noticeably-larger bag beside her. Maya looked away from Yumi and stared out of the window quietly, the mention of cooking and cleaning bringing a somewhat depressing thought to the forefront of her mind.

"I envy you…" Maya finally said, causing Yumi to raise a questioning eyebrow. The older woman smiled and shook her head. "I mean, you have so many hobbies and ways to better yourself. You can cook… you can clean…" She gave a bitter laugh. "You should see my apartment. More often than not it looks like some sort of natural disaster came and demolished the place."

Yumi smiled. "I'm sure it's not that bad." She said, though her tone spoke volumes about what she was really thinking.

"No, seriously, Yumi-san—" Maya said, trying to keep her face straight. "It's horrible."

"I'll take your word for it."

Maya shook her head, amused at her own situation. It really wasn't all that bad, her mess of an apartment. She was comfortable there, and didn't have to worry about much of anything. She could relax and concentrate on her work whenever she wanted. The only thing that really bothered Maya, of course, was…

"Well, I at least wish I could at least cook like you." Maya sighed, giving her cup of tea another sip. "I survive on instant food and take-out most of the time."

Yumi made a face. "Eww. That can't be healthy."

"It's one of the things I never was able to properly learn from my parents." Maya explained. "My mother taught me what she thought was useful, and my father… well, he could cook, but he never was a great teacher. You are lucky you can cook well."

Yumi's face softened, her eyes shifting to a far-away look as she stared towards the window to her left. "I wasn't always a good cook, you know." She said quietly.

"When did you learn?"

Yumi didn't reply for a long minute. She just stared out of the frosted window, as if trying to pick up some kind of answer in the condensation in the glass. Eventually, she sighed and swiveled her brown eyes back to Maya. "I started in college." She said. "I needed a new hobby, and my friend's cousin taught me."

Maya nodded and took a sip from her teacup. "That sounds lovely. Cooking is a really great hobby. All I ever did in my free time was reading, drawing, and painting." She put down her cup, a somewhat embarrassed smile creeping into her face. "I actually got kind of into drawing manga when I was in high school and college."

Yumi snorted a laugh, and quickly brought her hand up to her mouth. "Really?" She sputtered, her grin spreading through her fingers.

"Yea, I tried my hand at it… but my style just wasn't fit for Japanese manga." Maya shrugged off her sudden urge to blush. "So, I eventually just picked up my own style of art."

"And now you illustrate your own books." Yumi finished brightly.

"Yes…" Maya said softly. "Though, sometimes I wish I could do something new instead of just reading or drawing all the time."

Yumi leaned forward, putting her injured hand on the table and resting her chin in the other. "Like what?" She asked.

Maya shook her head and laughed softly. "No – never mind. It's silly."

"No— what? Tell me." Yumi pressed, her expression a mix of humor and interest. Maya looked back at the younger woman and sighed. She hadn't wanted to bring this up with her, as it wasn't really something important. But, if she was insisting…

The older woman leaned back, tucking a few strands of hair behind her ear. "I actually have been wanting to learn how to dance for a long time." She said.

"Dance?" Yumi repeated thoughtfully. "Why?"

Maya smiled, biting back a laugh. "Actually. It's pretty funny. Did you ever see the movie 'Shall We Dance'?"

"The movie with Koji Yakusho-sama and…" Yumi paused, obviously thinking of the other actor. "Uh…"

"Tamiyo Kusakari-san." Maya supplied. "Yes. That's the one."

Yumi nodded. "Yea. I saw it a long time ago when it first came out. It's a classic."

The older woman picked up her sandwich from her plate and held it out in front of her. "Yea, I loved it when I was younger. I still do, actually. Ever since I saw that movie, I wanted to learn how to dance like that. Real ballroom dancing; Waltz, Quick-Step, Rumba, Fox-Trot…" She sighed. "I just never got the opportunity to learn, I'm afraid."

"I can teach you."

Maya looked up from her sandwich, blinking at the woman sitting across from her. "What was that?" She asked carefully, not quite sure she had heard correctly.

"I can teach you." Yumi repeated. "To dance, I mean."

The older woman put down her sandwich and sat up a little straighter, a sudden excitement beginning to stir up in her chest. "Really?" She asked carefully. If Yumi could really teach her how to dance…

Yumi looked down, her expression clouding over with something Maya couldn't quick figure out. Hesitation? Reluctance? Whatever it was, the older woman couldn't divulge from her face. Eventually, she brought her eyes back up to Maya. "Yea. I believe I can teach you. If you want me to, that is."

"Of course I would!" Maya exclaimed, louder than she intended. Yumi leaned back in her chair at Maya's outburst, her face a mix of shock and surprise. Maya felt her face warm as she realized she had practically shouted her enthusiasm to the younger woman, as well as the rest of the restaurant. Her ears tickling with embarrassment, she sat back in her seat and hunched over slightly. "I mean… I would like it very much if you could teach me." She said, softer this time.

Yumi took a few moments to collect herself from Maya's surprising outburst, and then actually giggled. "Alright then, I can teach you how to dance. I don't think I can really teach all that well but…" She shrugged. "I can get through the basics with you, at least. Is that alright?"

"It sounds perfect." Maya replied, grinning widely.

Suddenly, Yumi let out an exasperated laugh; one that sounded like she just remembered something funny, but didn't find it as humorous as it should have been. "Thought, I just realized I haven't danced in a few years… I may be a bit rusty." She sighed and leaned her chin on her uninjured hand. "I'm going to have to remember how before I teach you."

Maya shook her head, still smiling. It would take more than that to bring down her mood now.

"I can wait."

0 – 0 – 0

**Interlude: Touko**

"Alright then, class dismissed. See you all next week." The aging professor said with a wave of his hand towards the doorway. His students all took the cue and began to gather their things to leave the room.

Touko Matsudaira remained seated for a few extra minutes, collecting her thoughts as she normally did following a lecture. Ever since she began her postgraduate, she always made it a point to sit quietly after lessons. Not only did it help her retain what her professors had talked about during the lecture, but it also allowed the doctoral student to think about what she had to do next and prepare accordingly.

Today, for example, she had just finished a lecture with her favorite professor about the proposed application of new-age drugs and certain pharmaceuticals during the psychological treatment of patients. It was an interesting lecture and, despite having sat through something similar a year before, she found that she picked up more this time than the first time around.

Unfortunately, Touko didn't have all that much free time to sit and mull over what she had learnt that day. After the lesson she had to make her way to her grandfather's hospital for the afternoon. Fortunately though, she did that almost every day now, and was almost too normal to be troublesome anymore.

Besides, Touko thought as she stood up and started to gather her notebooks and papers, spending time at the hospital and gaining on-site experience was about a million times better than lab work.

But what made today different than any other day was the fact that Touko wasn't going to take the long commute to the hospital herself. She wasn't even taking her own car today! Under most circumstances, Touko would be fairly annoyed at not being able to drive her own way to the isolated hospital. If she didn't drive there herself, then she couldn't drive herself back to her dorm in the evening when her shift was over. She couldn't drive home, either. She couldn't even decide to visit her Onee-sama, if the desire sprang up. Those reasons alone usually forced Touko to use her own car every day.

But today was an exception.

Touko hefted her bag over her shoulder and made her way to the door, bowing to her professor as she passed his desk. "Thank you, Sugimura-sensei." She said with a smile.

"Of course, Matsudaira-san." He replied, matching her smile. "It's always a pleasure."

Touko walked up to the doorway and was about to reach for the handle when the door opened, revealing a young woman standing on the other side. The woman, upon seeing Touko, leaned her head back and grinned.

"Hi Touko-san!" She greeting enthusiastically. "I'm glad I caught you before you left!"

Touko straightened her coat and leveled a friendly smile at the woman. "Hello, Sumi-san." She said kindly. "I was about to leave, yes. It's a good thing we met before I did." She turned to the professor sitting at his desk. "Goodbye, Sensei." With that, she stepped into the hallway with Sumi and fell into step beside the other woman.

"So, are you busy today?" Sumi asked without preamble from Touko's left, giving her long, honey-colored hair a toss around her head to her other side.

Touko shrugged. "Sort of." She said. "I'm due at the hospital in a couple hours."

Her reply elicited a groan from her friend. "Again? Geez, girl, you go there every day! Can't you take a break?"

"Certainly. But only when the situation calls for it."

"Oh, in that case, it certainly calls for it." Sumi said, turning around to face Touko as the pair exited through a pair of open doors into bright sunlight of the university campus. Another couple of chatting students stepped aside, allowing Touko and Sumi to pass by before walking in the doors they just walked through. "You, Touko-san, need to hang out with your friends!"

Touko raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Damn straight you do." The other nodded. "We never see you anymore, Touko-san! Every day after classes you just go to the hospital to work. Or go see your family. Or your sister." Touko sent an even stare towards Sumi, causing the woman to hold up her hands defensively. "N-not that I'm saying those things aren't important, of course. I'm only saying you have to make time for your friends too."

The two women passed by an adjacent building to the one they just left and the main gate of Tokyo Medical University came into view, the large gate wide open, giving them a clear view of the large parking lot spanning the whole area in front of the campus.

"I understand what you want to say, Sumi-san." Touko said with a sigh. "And it's not like I disagree with you. I just... have a lot expected of me. I'm going to take over the hospital next year when I graduate, so I have to prepare for that. My family is also pressuring me to think about what I will do after that; marriage and whatnot. And Onee-sama..." She trailed off, not wanting to talk about Yumi Fukuzawa with people outside the family and other close relations.

Sumi groaned again, throwing up her hands in frustration. "Yea, yea..." She said dejectedly. "We miss you, is all I'm sayin'."

"I know. I miss you all as well. I promise, when my coursework lightens up in a couple months, I will make time to see everyone again." Touko said, giving her friend a warm smile. Sumi's face lightened considerably and she skipped ahead of Touko, whirling around to face her with a wide smile.

"Awesome!" She enthused. "I'll let everyone know! And maybe..." She sided back into step beside Touko, leaning over towards her ear as if to tell a big secret. "Maybe you can even find time to snag a boyfriend, too."

Touko scoffed, shaking her head as the pair walked through the large front gate. If Sumi was really worried about something like that, then Touko may as well play along a little.

"Actually, there's been something I have been meaning to tell you..." She began, smiling inwardly as the roar of a car's engine sounded from down the road, coming from the entrance to the university's main parking lot.

Perfect timing, as usual.

If Sumi asked Touko what she had meant, her question was lost to the deafening sound of the red sport's car that roared up to the loading curb the two women stood on, screeching to a halt with smoking tires and scattered asphalt. Touko looked out of the corner of her eye at Sumi, and smiled tightly as she took in the shocked visage of her friend.

The passenger window of the car rolled down with a low whirr, revealing the driver to both women, and a few passersby that shared the same shocked look of Touko's friend. The driver leaned over the passenger seat, his beautiful, dark blue eyes scanning the small crowd silently. After a moment, he and Touko caught each other's eyes and shared a smile.

"That's my ride." Touko said, half turning to an even more shell-shocked and wide-eyed Sumi. "I'll see you later, Sumi-san." Her friend opened her mouth, letting a small, choked sound escape her lips before snapping shut again.

Touko made her way to the car and opened the passenger door, silently promising to call Sumi later and apologize for fooling her this way, and slid swiftly into her seat. "Shall we go?" She sweetly asked her driver, fastening her seatbelt around her waist and shutting the door with a muffled slam.

Suguru Kashiwagi chuckled lightly from the driver's seat and gestured to the crowd of students milling around the curb. "Having fun?" He asked, revving the engine.

"Whatever to do you mean, Nii-san?" Touko asked, giving a final wave to her friend outside the window. "I was simply talking to my friend after class."

"Of course." Suguru said, sighing tiredly and accelerating the car and leaving the small crowd behind them. He steered the car onto the main road and relaxed into a steady driving position. After a few lights and intersections, he cleared his throat. "So, how are classes?"

Touko shrugged. "Same as usual."

"Still plan to graduate next year?" Surugu asked.

"I do." The young woman said, turning to watch as they approached a line of slowing cars. Suguru seamlessly maneuvered the car past the grouping of other cars and wheeled through an intersection, ignoring a symphony of horns that honked their owner's annoyance at the man's driving. "Assuming that nothing unforeseen gets in the way of my work… such as dying in a car accident, Nii-san." Touko said calmly, but with a hint of warning leaking into her tone.

Suguru chuckled and the car noticeably slowed as he coasted up an on-ramp leading to a main thoroughfare towards the outskirts of Tokyo. "Dually noted." He said, relaxing his position and letting one arm dangle across the steering wheel. "We're on the highway now, anyway."

"An hour, then." Touko nodded, knowing full well the route from her university to her grandfather's hospital. It was usually a full two hour drive. But with Suguru's driving skills, they had cleared the city traffic in a fraction of the time, leaving Touko with extra time to work once she arrived. "Perfect."

"I'm happy you are pleased." Suguru said amiably. "How do you plan to return to your dorm later?"

"I will take the shuttle from the hospital to the local bus depot." Replied Touko, tearing her attention away from the passing cars to her cousin. "Then it's a simple a bus ride back to the dorms."

The older man nodded, content. "Good." He said.

The two lapsed into silence, listening to the ambient noise of road running underneath them, cars passing, and wind whipping past them as Suguru drove on. Touko divided her attention between the road, her cousin driving the car, and her own mobile phone she had withdrawn from her pocket. She hadn't received any new messaged that day, but checking one's phone often was something that became a habit very , Touko became fed up with waiting, and decided to break the silence.

"Did you meet with Onee-sama yesterday?" She asked, shifting her position in her seat to alleviate the growing numbness in her rear. If there was one thing, of many, she disliked about Suguru's car, it was that the seats were not really made for older man was quiet for a few long moments. Touko was about to repeat her question, when he finally spoke.

"I did." He said simply, as if it was all he could do to give Touko even that much. However, even though it sounded like he didn't really want to elaborate, he nevertheless continued speaking. "I called her in the morning and invited her out for lunch. All in all, she and I spent about two hours in each other's company."

Touko nodded. "I see." She said. "And what did you two talk about?"

"We caught up, initially." Suguru said, his tone turning a little defensive. "I hadn't seen her in about half a year, and was interested to see how she had been doing." Touko arched an eyebrow at him, but didn't say anything. Suguru continued. "After that, she and I talked a bit about the contract between her, Yuuki-chi and Onoga-sama."

"Yes. Onee-sama has been a little worried about that." Touko said musingly, leaning back in her seat. "What with the connection between Onoga-sama and the Ogasawara Group…"

"Mmm." Surugu mumbled noncommittally, staring straight down the length of the freeway.

"She hasn't really talked to me about it much." Touko said, eying her cousin warily. "Did she say anything in particular to you?"

"Aside from the basics, nothing really all that different from what I got from Yuuki-chi." Suguru sighed. "But I expected as much from Yumi-chan."

"True." Surugu tightened his grip on the steering wheel. "But I think it will work out well enough." He said. "I met Onoga-sama before. He is a relatively honest businessman, and will prioritize preservation of face above all else. He will honor the contract between himself and Yumi-chan and Yuuki-chi… his reputation with the Ogasawara Group depends on it."

"Agreed." Touko said with a long sigh. She pursed her lips, thinking of the best lead-in into the next topic. When she couldn't come up with one subtle enough, she decided to just dive into it. "And did you bring up Maya Sagara-san with Onee-sama?"

Suguru didn't answer right away. His gaze was set on the road, steely and full of concentration. Touko watched him out of the corner of her eye, patient yet stern as she waited for the man to answer. When he did, it wasn't quite the answer she had expected… or wanted.

"No. I did not." Suguru finally said."And why not?" Touko asked, her tone cooling noticeably. "Wasn't that the entire point of meeting with her?"

The Kashiwagi heir sighed softly, barely audible over the sound of driving, and shook his head. "It was, I will admit. But-"

"But what?" Touko cut him off.

"She..." Suguru hesitated for a few seconds. "She asked me about Sa-chan."

Touko turned her head to stare at Suguru, her eyes hardening reflexively at the mention of their cousin in England. "Sachiko-sama?" She repeated, instinctively using a proper honorific for the woman's name. "She actually asked you about her?  _You?_ "

That got a laugh out of the older man. He chuckled loudly and cracked a small grin. "Believe me; I was just as surprised as you are." He then became serious. "But, honestly, she did. She asked me about her."

"Had she ever asked you about her before?"

"Not once."

Touko made a thoughtful sound in the back of her throat, and brought her phone up to her face, tapping the device against her lips a few times. "Interesting. What did she ask you?"

Suguru shrugged. "How she faired when first getting to London... her studies there... how she took to taking over the business. That sort of thing."

"Anything else?"

The older man was quiet for a few seconds, and then exhaled softly. "She asked me if Sa-chan was involved with anyone."

Touko nodded, having guessed as much. It had been years since she, herself, had communicated with Sachiko Ogasawara. In fact, it had been right before starting her post-graduate finishing her undergraduate study when she really ceased all contact with the Ogasawara heiress. Touko had kept in contact with her before that simply due to the importance of keeping up familiarity with family members, no matter how distant they were, and because Suguru did much the same. She had even lived under the impression that everything would eventually blow over, and Sachiko would eventually come back and she and Yumi would become friends again.

Of course, that had been until-

Touko shook her head, attempting to ignore the memory that sprang up as well as the itch in her shoulder. "And what did you tell her?" She finally asked, her voice hollow and dry.

"I told her just what she wanted to hear, Touko. I told her what she wanted to hear." Suguru said.

The young woman arched an eyebrow incredulously. "What is that supposed to mean?" She asked.

"Exactly how it sounded. I told what she wanted to hear." Surugu repeated. "She had never asked me about Sa-chan before. As far as I know, she never asked anyone about her before. Not only that, but she asked about her personal life and if she was involved with anyone. Why do you think that is?"

Touko blinked a few times, considering the reasoning behind her Onee-sama's actions. Eventually, she shrugged. "I do not know." She said seriously. "You clearly have an idea, though. Why don't you share it with me?"

Suguru shifted his eyes to half look at his younger cousin, half watch the road. "She wants to move on." He said. "She wants to forget about Sa-chan and be her own person. She wants to be her own woman that is capable of standing on her own two feet and not need to live under the shadow of someone like Sachiko Ogasawara. It's..." He turned his full attention back to the road, his face softening. "I think it's something she's always wanted."

"And just how is Onee-sama to forget about Sachiko-sama when she is dating someone who looks exactly the same?!" Touko snarled, her voice suddenly turning harsh in her ears. "Have you seen the woman's picture? They could be sisters! Twins, even!"

"They aren't sisters or twins, Touko." Suguru said calmly. "I looked into it. Maya Sagara was born in Kyoto, a single child to her mother and father. They are most assuredly two separate people who have never even met before."

"It doesn't matter!" Touko seethed. "They look the same! It cannot be healthy for Onee-sama to have a relationship with the woman!"

"What makes you think they will have any sort of relationship beyond platonic?" Surugu sent a sidelong look at the young woman sitting beside him. "Maybe they will only be friendly with each other."

"And what if they do not?" Touko pressed, her anger from a moment ago still bubbling under the surface. "What if Onee-sama... what if she..."

"Touko." Suguru said as the woman trailed off. Touko blinked and looked back at the older man. "I will not say you are wrong for thinking it could be dangerous for Yumi-chan. God knows I also think that I was shocked when I first learned about Sagara-san. I had every intention of bringing her up with Yumi-chan yesterday."

"And yet you didn't." Touko bit out accusingly.

"I didn't." Suguru agreed. "I didn't because I want to wait and see how Yumi-chan develops from this situation. I want to witness what she does with this new..." He paused, choosing his words. "Friendship." He finally said.

Touko scoffed, disgusted. "You want to risk the health and safety of my Onee-sama over a whim like that? What if this 'friendship', as you call it, develops into something more? What if Onee-sama gets hurt by this whole thing?"

Surugu's face softened, his eyes rounding at the corners and his hands slacked on the steering wheel. After a moment, he exhaled noiselessly. "I desperately hope she doesn't." He said.

Touko glared at the older man for a long moment, biting back the retort that threatened to spill out of her mouth. It was easy for  _him_  to say!He hadn't been there that night when Onee-sama had needed to be picked up! No one had been! No one... except for Touko. No one else had known what happened between Touko and her Onee-sama. Not Suguru. Not Yoshino or Shimako. Not Rei, Nana, Noriko... not her Onee-sama's parents or even her brother. No one.

And no one ever would.

Eventually, after a long silence, Touko turned away from Suguru and huffed out a breath of annoyance. "Fine." She said softly. "If you won't say something to her, I will."

0 - 0 - 0

_End of Interlude 2_


	10. Chapter 10

**The Princess and the Sparrow**

_Interlude 3_

0 - 0 - 0

**Interlude: Yumi**

_My heart was pounding. Pounding in my chest like something powerful… something alive… something that might burst out of my chest if I were to let it. My blood was pumping through my ears, blocking out all sounds except for my breathing._

_My breathing… and hers._

_My eyes instinctively flicked up to hers, and my breath caught in my throat. She was sitting across from me, staring back with her dark, sapphire-blue eyes and tense, tight-lipped expression. It wasn't really an expression I necessarily would have liked to see on her face at the moment, but considering the circumstances, and the fact that my face was likely mirroring her own… I could understand._

_I tried to clear my throat, but the only sound that came out forced and strangled. I was already blushing in embarrassment and anticipation, but I could definitely feel my face warm further. I averted my eyes, instead looking down at my legs tucked underneath me. It was all I could do to not fidget more than I already was._

_She seemed to sense my discomfort – or maybe she was feeling it to, and as the elder of us, maybe she felt as though she should take the initiative. She slowly inched forward, reaching up with her hand to place it on my cheek._

_"Yumi." She whispered softly, drawing my attention back to her face. Her perfect face accented by a few strands of hair that were dangling from her bangs. "You're shivering."_

_I let out a shaky breath. "I'm… a little nervous." I said slowly, unsure._

_She looked back at me, stroking my cheek softly. "I am too, actually." She said with a laugh that matched her look._

_"Really?"_

_She nodded. "Honestly. I am really very nervous. I haven't ever done anything like this before. I would even go as far as to say I am somewhat scared."_

_I couldn't help but be truly shocked by her words. Not at the fact that she was as new at this as I was – I had expected as much. But the fact that she was nervous and scared as I was… it just made me feel immensely relieved. Upon hearing her admission, I smiled and leaned into her hand against my cheek._

_"I'm scared too, Onee-sama." I whispered. Her eyes immediately widened slightly. In fear or fright, I wasn't really sure. "But – at the same time… I want this. I am scared, yes. But I also know that I love you... more than I am scared. So, it's alright." My voice rose to a high-pitched squeak as I spoke, until it went unheard to both Onee-sama and myself._

_Onee-sama's eyes softened and she smiled, her hand caressing my cheek. We both sat there silently for a long time, just looking into each other's eyes in the semi-darkness of Onee-sama's bedroom. The lights were off – save for the soft glow of a dim socket-light on the far side of the spacious room, and the dark sheen of Onee-sama's hair shone brightly in the fuzzy blue light coming through the window. Everyone in the Ogasawara mansion was asleep (we assumed, anyway), save for the servants. And if things progressed as they normally did when I stayed over at Onee-sama's house, we would be left to our own devices for the rest of the night. It was all normal and as per our usual routine._

_Except tonight… Onee-sama and I weren't following our normal routine. Tonight was special. Tonight… tonight was going to be remembered._

_"I love you too, Yumi." Onee-sama said, her voice barely above a whisper._

_Just hearing her say those words was enough to send my heart into a flutter. I had heard it many times before from her lips. But each time she said it, it was just like the first time. My head seemed light, my chest pounded harshly, and my ears prickled in both embarrassment and delight. I felt myself grin and nod. I knew I was ready. Ready for my Onee-sama._

_She received my nod by moving forward and capturing my lips in a kiss, her hand never leaving my cheek. I shut my eyes and leaning into her growing embrace. Her lips, though a little thin against my larger ones, moved slightly against my mouth as she adjusted her position on the bed to sit beside me. I welcomed her new position by shifting my weight further up towards the back of the large, queen-sized bed. Soon, with a few more adjustments and awkward giggles, we found ourselves lying in the center of Onee-sama's bed, in each other's embrace._

_Onee-sama pulled away from my lips long enough to smile down at me. I returned her smile and licked my lips, hating the feeling of my own dry, sticky mouth on Onee-sama's soft, perfect lips._

_After a few agonizingly sweet minutes or kissing, I could feel my chest pound as Onee-sama's hands worked their way underneath my nightshirt. It was a simple slip-on, long-sleeved shirt, and it was easy enough to take on and off. And, apparently, easy enough to find one's way into if one so desired._

_My breath hitched into my throat as I felt Onee-sama's nails skim across the skin of my abdomen. My stomach muscles clenched reflexively and I pulled away from her lips to look up at her, her eyes glittering darkly down at me with amusement and excitement._

_I swallowed dryly, my tongue cottony and uncomfortable in my mouth, and couldn't stop my hand from shaking by my thigh as all my concentration was focused on the feeling of Onee-sama's hand on my skin. Her other hand hadn't left my cheek, and was still slowly caressing my skin softly as she stared down at me, as if to look for any sign of discomfort or indecisiveness. When she found none, she smiled again and pressed her lips against mine again._

_I sighed into her mouth as I relished the attention I was getting from Onee-sama. Her fingers danced across my cheek and stomach. Her hand cupped against my cheek lovingly. Her lips and tongue explored the contours of my mouth expertly. It was all I could do to not simply cry in happiness as I lay there in her embrace._

_The pounding in my chest had lessened somewhat as seconds ticked by, but it came back harder than ever when I felt Onee-sama's hand slide up to grasp my left breast delicately. I pulled back from her mouth with a soft gasp, and caught sight her looking down at me wordlessly. Her hand stopped all movement, barely touching the skin underneath my breast, waiting for confirmation to continue or stop._

_I took a shaky breath, willing myself to calm down as much I was able. My heart thumped almost painfully, sending tolerable stinging sensations all the way to my fingers and toes, but it was nothing I couldn't recognize as simply nervousness. I swallowed, licked my lips again, and gave Onee-sama an affirming nod._

_Slowly, almost tantalizingly so, she reached up to cup my breast softly in her hand, and squeezed ever so gently. My body tensed in reaction, and my back stiffened tightly as I felt the new sensation of her hand on the bare flesh under my shirt. My hand still shook alongside my leg, and I forced it down against the bedspread in an attempt to quell its movements. All the while, Onee-sama looked down at my face with her beautiful eyes._

_She gave my breast another squeeze and I heard a soft, almost unnoticeable moan escape my lips. Onee-sama blinked a couple times, clearly surprised and amused, and giggled airily._

_"Here. Sit up, Yumi." She said, withdrawing her hand from my breast. I obeyed, wondering slightly what she had in mind. She shifted to one side so I could sit up, and she placed her hands on either side of my body. "Lift up your arms."_

_"Eh...?" I sounded, blinking rapidly. "B-but..."_

_"I want to take off your shirt." Onee-sama said. As if it were the most natural thing in the world. Well, it was... but that was really beside the point. I wanted to argue, but the almost expectant look on Onee-sama's face told me she would perhaps be disappointed if I were to refuse. After all, it was what we were here for. A little embarrassment was nothing in the long run._

_I gave a dejected, almost hesitant, nod and lifted my arms up above my shoulders. Onee-sama grasped my shirt and tugged it up over my head and off my arms. Free of the article of clothing, I lowered my arms as quickly as I could and crossed them over my chest protectively. I chanced a glance towards Onee-sama, and found her sitting in front of me, her eyebrow raised._

_"What is the matter?" She asked, her lips twitching into a small grin. "Don't tell me you are embarrassed to be seen..." She was actually enjoying this!_

_I flicked my eyes down to my legs, one of them was crooked out to the side and the other tucked underneath me. I fidgeting nervously, not quite sure how to bring it up. Well, she would find out eventually._

_"It's not that, Onee-sama..." I whispered, my hands falling away from me chest to prove that I, in fact, did not mind being seen. By her, anyway. "It's just that I... I didn't shave." I shifted my legs, pulling them further under me. "Under my arms or my legs. I didn't think we would... you know."_

_I felt my face, ears and neck all burn with shame at my admission, and waited for her response. I honestly hadn't even considered we would be doing this tonight. If I had known, I would have made an attempt to at least make my body presentable to someone like Onee-sama. As it was now, I would be lucky if Onee-sama ignored the fact that I was more than a little... well... one would get the idea._

_I looked up when I heard Onee-sama laugh softly. I must have had a confused look on my face, because she reached up again to caress my cheek. "Actually," She said with a quiet giggle. "I didn't either."_

_I blinked in shock. There was just no way she could have just said-_

_"It's true." She confirmed with a defiant grin. "Well, because of the dress I chose for tonight, I had to shave my legs. But I am afraid I neglected under my arms." She shrugged. "As for any other areas... suffice to say you will see."_

_If I could have blushed harder at that moment, I am sure I was. There wasn't anything really wrong or embarrassing in what she had said. But the fact that she said it with such clarity and promise... it was enough to send shivers up and down my spine. Not quite sure what to say at her declaration, I quelled the still prevalent nervousness in my chest and back and settled for a quiet nod, and lowered my arms down to my sides._

_The two of us fell into silence for a long moment, neither one of us moving or speaking. I sat there, shifting slightly uncomfortably under what I knew was Onee-sama's gaze. My shirt was off, giving her a good view of my chest free of any articles of clothing or undergarments. I knew she had seen me before, when we had been changing clothes and other such times, but this time was different. I knew that this time, she was looking at me with different thoughts. With different goals and ideas in mind. Willing myself to not bring my arms up to cover myself, I sat as quietly and as meekly as I could, wishing with all my hearth that whatever Onee-sama saw in me, she liked it._

_I eventually heard Onee-sama daintily clear her throat, and I looked up to see her holding her hands out to me. "Can you assist me?" She asked, giving her hands a shake._

_I immediately knew what she meant. Her long-sleeved nightgown hung loosely from her wrists and arms, clearly impressing on me the realization that she, unlike myself who still had a pair of panties on now that my shirt had been discarded, was still clothed._

_I squeaked in embarrassment and inched forward, reaching up with my shaking hands to her wrists. I grasped her forearms and pulled on her nightgown's sleeves, earning a soft chuckle from the other._

_"It pulls up from the bottom, Yumi." Onee-sama said mock-reproachfully. "My arms do not come off as far as I know."_

_I laughed in spite of myself and licked my lips, reaching down to her hips. My hands rested on the subtle roundness of her body, my fingers curling around the smooth arch from her hips to her waist, and grasped the silk fabric of her gown. I swallowed again, and slow started to pull up. Her gown slid up her legs and thighs, Onee-sama shifted her position as I worked to keep the gown from catching on her legs tucked underneath her, and I averted my eyes as her light-colored panties came into view. I pulled her gown up past her neck and she reached up with her arms to allow the clothing to slide free from her head and wrists._

_As I finished freeing her of the gown, I grasped it tightly against my chest and, not able to help myself, inhaled deeply from the cream-colored fabric. I breathed in Onee-sama's scent from the gown, and looked up to see her staring back at me, a wholly amused look in her eyes._

_"Um... sorry." I said softly, shifting the gown off to the side beside my discarded nightshirt._

_"Don't be." Onee-sama said, sliding forward and pressing her lips against mine again._

_I fell into the kiss, reaching up with my still-shaking hands to wrap around the bare skin of Onee-sama's waist. She reacted, either instinctively or knowingly, by pushing forward with her hands on my shoulders to set my back gently on the bed. Now having full access to my body from her position, Onee-sama pulled away from my lips to take advantage of it._

_She trailed kissed from my mouth down to my chin, and continued down to my neck. I felt myself sigh in appreciation to her actions, knowing full that she wanted to know if I liked what she was doing. Since I didn't trust my voice to work at the moment, I would rely on my body and subtle sounds do to the trick._

_After a few seconds, Onee-sama found her way to my collarbone and began planting a line of light, fluttery kissed along it to my shoulder. I squirmed lightly at the sensation, and actually giggled when she nipped at the skin of my upper arm with her teeth. I knew I shouldn't have laughed, but the action was so surprising, it almost didn't seem like it was Onee-sama who was doing it._

_She continued working her way back up my arm towards my collarbone, moving slowly down between my underarm and breast, and then I felt a sudden jolt shoot to the back of my neck and down my back, causing a squeal of surprise to leak out as my whole body stiffened._

_"Yumi?" Onee-sama gasped, pulling back a few inches to look at me, wide-eyed. "What's wrong?"_

_I shivered uncontrollably, still feeling the flurry of sensations that creeped up and down my back, and forced myself to calm down by grasping the bed tightly with one hand. "You... there... it..." Was all I got out. Completely unhelpful._

_Onee-sama glanced down at the place she was kissed; between my breast and my underarm. She looked back up at me and smiled. "There? You like to be kissed there?"_

_I felt myself blush furiously, my jaw clenched tightly in defiance. It wasn't like I knew I would be sensitive there! Honestly!_

_Taking my silence as my affirmation, Onee-sama smiled pleasantly and lowered her head again, this time purposefully avoiding the area that had caused me to cry out in surprise and shock. She worked her way over my left breast and crossed down with her mouth to the skin under my right breast, gently sliding her hand down the left side of my body with her hand as she worked._

_I lay there, trying my best to be as still as I could, as Onee-sama explored my body with her mouth and fingers. I felt each and every touch – each and every caress and kiss. Each time she barely missed the skin of my breast. Each time she was about to travel inward with her hand but decided at the last minute to return to my waist. Each time she pressed her cheek to my own. Each time, I desperately wished she would do more._

_When Onee-sama finally did lay a light, almost feathery kiss on the center of my breast, I couldn't help the whimper that escaped my lips. She did it again, and another sound spilled out of me. Each time she pressed her mouth to the sensitive skin of my chest, I instinctively rewarded her with a whimper and a squirm of my legs and hands._

_Onee-sama finally seemed as though she was satisfied with my response to her actions, and brought herself back up to eye-level. She smiled at me and planted a soft kiss on my lips, which I happily accepted with a grateful sigh. After a few long seconds, I could feel her hand trail down to my stomach. My muscles clenched and tightened from her touch, but that only served to excite me more. Her hand continued down to rest just below my belly. I felt her fingers brush the fabric of my panties, and my breath stopped in my throat._

_I pulled away from our kiss and looked up to see those perfect, blue eyes gazing down at me. They weren't how they usually were, though. Something was… off about them. They were the same, but there was a definite… familiarity missing. They was an almost, new light in them; a new personality. It was the same eyes, same way they matched her face… but it was just… different. New._

_"Yumi-san?" The woman above me asked, uncertain. "Are you alright?"_

_I nodded, swallowing dryly. "Yes. I'm alright, Maya-san." Thats right. It was Maya's eyes. That's what was new and different about them. They looked the same... but had a whole new way of appearing to me._

_"Do you want to continue?"_

_I took a few long, deep breaths, and nodded. "Yes. I really do." I replied decidedly. I did want this. I know I did._

_Maya's lips curled up into a smile, and she leaned forward, pressing her thin lips against mine softly. Her tongue slid past my teeth, twisting around in my mouth as it met my own. I felt myself moan – or maybe it was, in fact, Maya – as my hands explored her back and chest above me. My fingers grasped and clawed at anything they could get a handle on. Occasionally, Maya would flinch if my nails dug too deeply into her skin, and she would giggle into my mouth in response._

_Her fingers that had rested on my underwear, the ones that had stopped when I gasped and pulled away, pinched and flicked at the fabric teasingly. She would pull at the elastic, and then let go of it, only to tug at it again a few seconds later._

_Eventually, I pulled back from her mouth, and glared up at Maya. "Stop teasing me." I said breathily, my chest heaving and my legs and hips squirming. "If you are going to do it, just do it. I can't stand the waiting." As if to make my point, I dug my nails deep into her waist and pulled my leg up, resting my thigh at the junction between her legs._

_Maya gasped at the action and her head fell down beside mine, her free hand going up to clasp the other side of my face. She groaned in my ear as I pulled my leg up further between her thighs, and her fingers tightly clenched the cloth of my underwear._

_"As you wish, Yumi-san." I heard her whisper in my ear. As soon as she finished speaking, I felt her hand slide underneath my underwear and I heard my own voice whimper in expectation and ecstasy._

_…_

Yumi could recognize, even in her half-asleep half-awake consciousness, the familiar sensations.

The subtle, dreamlike thoughts assaulting her in her mind, giving way to the physical as she lay in her bed, surrounded by the familiar darkness of her bedroom. As the sensations grew in intensity, her thoughts formed more solid and tangible, until the heat in her belly reached its' peak, and Yumi clenched her thighs together as tightly as she could under her quilt, her fingers clawing at her bedspread. She rolled her head around and bit down on the soft fabric of her pillow, muting her whimpers as much as she could until the heat in her thighs and belly subsided.

When they finally did, after what seemed like hours - slow, blissful hours - Yumi relaxed her body into the soft warmth of her bed. Her hands fell limp at her sides. Her legs, while still pressed together relishing the lingering aftereffects of her dream, tingled lazily all the way to her toes. Yumi slowly released her pillow from between her teeth and let out a sigh of relief.

Yumi lay there in the darkness for a long minute, listening to the sound of her breathing as it softened from heavy pants to light intakes of air, and finally a light sigh through her nose. Once the tingling in her legs and feet was all but unnoticeable, she let out a heavy breath and pulled herself out of bed. She got to her feet, shakily at first, and padded her way through the darkness to her bathroom door.

Flicking on the fluorescent light at she entered the bathroom, she shut her eyes against the brightness and winced inwardly, waiting until her eyes adjusted to the change in lighting. Once her eyes got used to the new lighting, Yumi approached the sink and turned on the tap, letting the cool tap water flow into her hands. She splashed her face a few times, and looked up at her reflection in the mirror.

Looking at herself, eyes lidded and complexion flushed, Yumi actually considered for a moment that she shouldn't have been so quick to replace the mirror she had broken last week. But, knowing that Touko would notice and ask questions the moment she found out… it was better that she had replaced it as soon as she had been able.

Thinking of the broken mirror caused Yumi to glance down at her hand, examining the thin white lines lining her knuckles where she had sliced the skin open the previous week. Her hand had healed nicely, much to her relief. And while there were still some subtle marks in the form of almost unnoticeable scars, Yumi had retained almost full use of her drawing hand.

That was some luck, at least.

Lowering both her hands back to the sink, Yumi let out a sigh and leaned her full weight against the counter, not able to keep the shudder than sprang up as the silence of the room finally hit her. Her body still felt hot, her toes still tingled, and her thighs were uncomfortably sticky with sweat. Not to mention her nightshirt and her underwear.

"Jeez..." She muttered with a shake of her head. That had been intense.

With a defeated sigh, Yumi lifted her shirt above her head and tossed in over to the corner of the bathroom where she normally put her dirty clothing. She reached down and slid her panties down her legs, stepping fully out of them and tossing the article of clothing over to where her shirt had landed.

Free of clothing, Yumi chewed at the inside of her cheek, debating wether or not to have a quick shower to clean off all the sweat from her body. After a few short seconds, however, she decided against it. She would take a shower in the morning before Touko arrived to spend her free day with with her.

Besides, Yumi realized with a tired grumble and a final look into the mirror, she was way too tired to manage a shower at the moment.

She flicked off the bathroom light and entered her bedroom again. The darkness of her room, made even more oppressive because she had just gotten used to the bathroom light, should have made it difficult to find her way back to the bed. But Yumi found it without trouble and collapsed back into the soft pile of blankets and sheets with a soft grunt. She was vaguely aware that she hadn't bothered to slip into a new pair of panties or another T-shirt, but she couldn't really be bothered.

The smell of her sheets and pillow brought the slowly receding images of Yumi's dream to the front of her mind, and she swallowed dryly. Having dreams about Sachiko was not all that uncommon, truthfully. Even though it had been just about ten years since then, Yumi still could hear the woman's voice. She could still smell her hair. Could still feel Sachiko's skin on hers...

As much as Yumi hated to admit it, she really missed the physicality of a true relationship. Being close to another as friends or sisters was one thing... but the closeness of lovers was something completely different. And it was something Yumi desperately missed on occasion.

Yumi scoffed lightly to herself in the darkness. Just how long  _had_  it been since she had - as Sei put it - gotten laid? Four years? Five? There had been nothing serious ever since Sachiko, but there had been a few instances during her final years attending Geidai where even Yumi needed to be close to someone. Nothing had lasted, of course, but still, it had occurred. As it happened, the number of other lesbians (or even bisexual women) in Geidai had been few and far between.

In the end, though... not one of them had been like Sachiko Ogasawara.

Thinking about the Ogasawara heiress caused Yumi's eyes, though shut, to narrow despite the sleepiness creeping up on her. It had been Sachiko she had dreamed about... but it had felt different at the end. Different... and very much unlike Yumi's memories with her. Most of her memories with Sachiko were sweet, pure, testing. Full of giggles and awkward touches. They had been two girls, even as an eighteen and nineteen year old, that were exploring what they could do and could not do.

But at the end of her dream it had been so much more... intense. There had been no awkward fumbling and unsure emotions. There was no indecisiveness or immature guesswork. Yumi had known exactly what she was doing. Not only that... but she had felt like she  _needed_  it. She had longed for it. The attention, the physical expression, the desire.

And Sachiko did as well.

But... was that really what had happened?

Yumi shook her head, confused. The dream was already swimming away from her attention like a tadpole in a murky puddle, unable to be caught with her own hands.

Oh well. It was a dream. An intense, satisfying dream… but a dream nonetheless.

Settling back into her covers, Yumi stretched out her legs and wiggled her toes, relishing the feeling of her cool blankets on her skin. Sometimes sleeping without clothes, the thin layer of sweat covering her skin ignorable, was nice once in a while.

0 – 0 – 0

_End of Interlude 3_


	11. Chapter 11

**The Princess and the Sparrow**

_Chapter 11_

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 1**

Yumi wasn't even fully dressed when she got her call from Touko. Her phone buzzed on her bedside table, startling the architect as she was trying to pull of her jeans. She almost fell over but, luckily, caught herself on her bed, sending a glare at the machine rattling on the small wooden surface. Why did she always seem to be frightened by the loud, sudden noises like those that her phone made? If it didn't mean she would miss all her calls, she would have left the thing on silent mode all the time.

Hopping over to the table on one leg, her other foot still caught up in her pants, she snatched up her phone and keyed the answer toggle.

"Hey Touko. You almost made me fall over." She greeted, one hand steading herself on the bed.

"Oh, I do apologize, Onee-sama. I will do better next time." Touko's voice sounded in Yumi's ear. Yumi raised an eyebrow. Did that mean the younger woman would actually try and call at a better time (which she would have no way of knowing anyway), or in fact try harder to make Yumi fall over? It was indeed a fine question.

"Uh huh." Yumi mumbled. She cocked her head to the side, holding her phone between her ear and her shoulder. With both her hands free, she continued to wrestle with her jeans. "So, what time are you coming?"

"I just arrived, actually."

Yumi blinked. "Oh. Well, I'm not ready yet, so come on in. Doors open."

"Very well. I'll see you in a minute." Touko replied, and Yumi heard the sound of her phone disconnecting. Throwing her phone down on her bed, she returned her attention to the top button of her jeans. It honestly shouldn't be this difficult to put on pants. She didn't remember them being so difficult to put on a few months ago- so either they were shrinking, or the alternative…

No. That was simply impossible. They must be shrinking.

"Hah!" She grinned triumphantly as the button fastened the jeans snugly around her hips. "Take that, metabolism." She turned around with a flourish and stepped towards her dresser to pick out a shirt when her bedroom door opened. She turned her head to see her petite soeur in the doorway.

Touko took one step in the room and halted, her straightened hair bobbing slightly at her shoulders. She eyed Yumi for a split second, who was dressed in only jeans and a cream-colored bra. Arching her eyebrow high into her bangs, Touko sighed.

"It is after ten in the morning, Onee-sama, and you aren't even dressed yet?" She muttered to herself, though clearly loud enough for Yumi to hear.

Yumi huffed and stamped her foot on the floor. "Hey, I slept in this morning!"

"Clearly." Touko shot back, a smirk on her lips. She nodded her head towards Yumi's dresser and continued her way into the room. "Might I suggest your matching light-blue blouse and sweater set? It would go well with your jeans."

Yumi blinked, trying to recall the clothing Touko was referring to. "Oh, yea… they would go well together. Now where are they…" She mumbled as Touko seated herself on Yumi's bed.

"The blouse is in the second drawer and the sweater is in the forth on the right." Touko said absently, withdrawing her phone from her purse and keying it on.

"Remind me," Yumi said dryly as she moved to her dresser. "Is this your room or mine? How is it you know where all my clothes are?"

Touko shrugged, a bored sound escaping her throat. "I don't. But you usually put your clothes in the same place every time, Onee-sama. It is an educated guess."

Yumi gave the younger woman a wary look and opened the second drawer of her off-white dresser. Inside were a number of tops, all folded and neatly laid out. In the middle stack of shirts was the very same blouse that Touko had mentioned. Yumi retrieved it and, to her chagrin, also found the matching sweater in the very same drawer Touko predicted.

"I hate you sometimes." She said as she walked over to the bed next to her soeur.

"I am happy to hear that, Onee-sama." Came the reply, short and sweet.

Yumi shrugged into her blouse and was about to pull her sweater over her head when she stopped. "Oh, damn. I almost forgot."

Touko looked up from her phone. "What?"

"My hair… and make-up." Yumi said tiredly. "I took a shower an hour ago so my hair should be fine… but then again, I didn't plan on doing much to it."

Touko regarded her grande soeur for a moment, and then nodded. "Your usual style should suffice, I think." She got up and walked over to Yumi's bedroom door. On the back of the door was a number of wooden pegs, and on each peg hung a pair of ribbons. Altogether there was probably more than a dozen different colors of ribbons; blue, green, red, white, black, orange, yellow… indeed, any color Yumi might want to decorate her hair with. Touko plucked a pair of dark blue ribbons from their peg and returned to Yumi.

"Wow, you are in a blue mood today, aren't you?" Yumi chuckled, turning her head to let Touko tie the ribbons in her hair. Touko didn't reply. After a moment, Yumi felt the familiar tug of her hairbrush and couldn't help but giggle in response.

"What is it, Onee-sama?" Touko softly asked.

Shaking her head, Yumi laughed again. "Nothing. It's just… it's always like this, isn't it?"

"Like what?"

"You brushing my hair… helping me get dressed and put on makeup. It's like you are the Onee-sama and I am your petite soeur. You are always helping me and I never do anything for you."

"That's not true at all, Onee-sama." Yumi heard Touko say from behind her. She grimaced as the younger woman freed a particularly large knot of brown hair. "You do wonders for my self-esteem."

Yumi blinked once. Twice. A third time. Then she whirled around to find Touko smirking at her with the hairbrush clutched protectively in her hand. "Hey!" She said, half-laughing.

Touko shrugged. "Well, with all your wallowing in self-pity, it is only natural that my self-esteem grows by leaps and bounds around you, isn't it?"

Yumi glared at the girl next to her for a few moments, and then signed loudly, throwing up her hands in defeat. "Fine, fine." She declared. "Feed off of my miserly like a mood leech. I am happy I am able to do something positive for you, in any case."

Touko brought the brush back to Yumi's hair. "In all seriousness, Onee-sama," She said. "Don't worry about a thing. I prefer things this way."

"You prefer it?"

"Yes. I like doing things for you." She paused, and Yumi felt a handful of her hair being bound by a ribbon. "It's…"

"It's… troublesome?" Yumi hazarded. "Frustrating? Busying? Irritating at times?"

Touko was silent as she worked at the ribbon in Yumi's hair. She finished the one and was in the process of tying the other when she laughed softly. "All of the above, Onee-sama. All of the above."

Yumi groaned and fell on the bed. "Wonderful. I'm  _soooo_  pleased I am such a reliable Onee-sama." She lay there for a moment, staring across her room to her dresser. She could feel Touko's weight shift on the bed until the younger woman sat fully on it, and was about to push herself up when Touko lay down behind her, laying her hand on Yumi's shoulder.

"You are reliable, Onee-sama." Touko said softly. "I don't claim to know exactly how you see yourself with other people. You may think of yourself as… troublesome, or frustrating, or Irritating." Yumi could hear the woman's smile through her voice. "And in some cases, it may or may not be true. But as far as I am concerned, I could not have asked for a better Onee-sama."

In spite of herself, Yumi grinned at Touko's words. "You mean it?"

"I would not have said that if I didn't mean it."

The two women were silent for a long moment, and eventually, Yumi felt Touko tie the second ribbon in her hair as they lay there. When she finished, Touko sat up and pushed herself off the bed.

"Now, what was that you said about make-up?"

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 2**

The sun was just setting below the city skyline when the pair returned to Yumi's home, their arms laden with groceries and food. Yumi opened the door, stepped inside and made immediately for the kitchen. Turning on the kitchen light by pushing her elbow into the switch, she set the two plastic bags on the counter in the middle of the room and sighed in relief. There hadn't been a lot of things in the bags, but they had been pretty heavy.

Touko stepped into the room a moment later, her shoes already off, and she silently set her own bags beside Yumi's. The only proof that her burden had been heavy was when she rubbed at her arm soothingly. "That was everything, Onee-sama." She said, turning to Yumi.

"Yea, I think so. I'll go take off my shoes and change. Then we can start dinner." Touko nodded, and Yumi left the kitchen, taking a moment to slip out of her boots, and make her way towards her room. She walked down the hallway and stepped into her darkened bedroom and, not even bothering to turn on the light, slipped out of her sweater and tossed it onto her bed.

Yumi reached up to pull her shirt off, and then paused. The room was dark, the soft glow from the evening twilight barely making it through her curtains, and it was only because of the ambient light from the kitchen and hallway that she could see anything at all. The darkness and stillness of the room brought back what had happened earlier that morning to the forefront of her memory. The smell of her sheets, the quiet darkness of her room and the stickiness of sweat. All of it came back to her as she stood there in her room.

With a shake of her head, Yumi threw her shirt to join her sweater on her bed. After a moment's hesitation she kicked off her jeans and unfastened her bra, and then she pulled a nightshirt out from her dresser, slipping it over her head to replace her shirt. Opting to keep her socks on, she left the rest of her clothes on her bed and left the room to rejoin Touko in the kitchen.

"What should I leave out for dinner, Onee-sama?" Touko asked as Yumi walked into the room, tossing a curious glance at the older woman's nightshirt as she did.

"Leave out the leeks, beef and tomatoes. Put everything else away and take out six eggs, soy sauce, vinegar, salt, sugar, garlic the cooking oil, and enough rice for the both of us." Yumi listed everything off the top of her head as she moved around the counter to help with putting the groceries away.

"Leek, beef, tomatoes and eggs?" Touko murmured as she removed the meat and vegetables from the bags. "What are we making?"

"Beef stir-fry and egg with tomato." Yumi replied as she started to put things in the fridge. "Chinese tonight." She explained.

"We should have invited Aya, in that case."

Yumi laughed softly. "I'd rather wait to see if it's successful before I get Aya-chan's verdict, truthfully. If it doesn't work out tonight, I'll just have you as a witness to my failure."

"You rarely fail in cooking anymore, Onee-sama."

"Well, there's a first for everything."

"I suppose so."

Once the groceries were put away and the rice was cooking, Yumi began to work on the meat while Touko washed the leeks and tomatoes. Carefully slicing the beef into strips, Yumi dropped them into a bowl of soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, salt and egg to marinade. After that, she cracked more eggs into a large bowl and began to whisk them with a pair of chopsticks.

"Onee-sama." Touko called from the sink. Yumi turned to look as she continued beating at her eggs.

"Mmm?"

"You know…" She hesitated, as if considering if she should actually talk. Eventually, she seemed to make a decision. "Valentine's Day is coming up pretty soon."

Yumi blinked, a smile coming to her lips. "Ah. Your right… as usual." She said. It hadn't occurred to Yumi but, as today was the first day of February, Valentine's Day was indeed in two weeks. In previous years, with keeping to the tradition to their time at Lillian Academy, Yumi and her friends would get together and have some sort of party, or event to celebrate the holiday. The past two years, however, it was proving to be more and more difficult to gather everyone together.

Last year, Yoshino (and by extension Rei) weren't able to come since the holiday fell on a weekday. The year before that Yumi was not able to attend because of a meeting with a client. Touko didn't feel right going without her Grande Soeur, so she didn't attend either. This year, if the new 'tradition' of someone not being able to attend held true, would likely be the same as the past few years.

"Have you heard if anyone was planning anything?" Yumi asked as she continued working at her bowl of eggs.

"Not yet." Sighed Touko. She walked towards the knife drawer and took out a chopping knife used for vegetables. Returning to the leeks she just finished washing, she began slicing them into smaller pieces. "I imagine word will get around in the next few days from someone. Yoshino-sama or Shimako-sama, most likely."

"Probably." Yumi agreed, wondering if anyone would even bother with Valentine 's Day this year. Last year had been fun; a dinner and a fun game with everyone in attendance. Yumi and Touko had supplied prizes, much to everyone's enjoyment. But she just didn't know if anyone would still be even willing to keep up the tradition anoymore. Nothing had been mentioned at New Year's, which was when they usually first brought it up. So… Yumi just wasn't sure.

Fleetingly, she thought of Maya. What would she be doing for Valentine's Day? Would she be meeting with her friends? Would she be working? This year the holiday was on a Tuesday, so most people were working. But from what Yumi gathered, Maya had a sporadic working schedule much the same as Yumi's. So anything was possible.

Thinking of the older woman and her plans for Valentine's Day gave cause for Yumi to shake her head. She put down the bowl of thoroughly whisked eggs down on the counter and walked over to the sink to wash her hands.

Just  _why was_  she wondering about Maya and her plans for Valentine's Day? It wasn't as though Yumi wanted to monopolize the woman's time. She was sure to have her own friends, life and relationships. So, in effect, she  _must_  have some sort of plan for then. Sure, Yumi was Maya's friend. And sure she had offered to teach Maya to dance. But really, Yumi couldn't take up too much of her time. She felt like she was already taking too much already.

"Onee-sama?"

Yumi jumped slightly when Touko touched her shoulder. "Ah! T-Touko?" She hadn't noticed the other approach.

The woman eyed Yumi for a moment, and then turned her head back towards the tomatoes. "I asked how you wanted them cut."

"Oh." Yumi sighed, and turned off the water. She reached for a towel and began to quickly dry her hands. "In eights. Get rid of the core, but keep as much of the juice in the slices as possible. I read that the juice helps flavor the eggs." Touko nodded in acknowledgement and turned back to her counter.

Turning back to the beef, Yumi poked the meet with her finger to make sure the marinade was setting, wondering why her thoughts had turned to Maya. They were friends, weren't they? So it was only natural that Yumi was curious about how the other spent her time and holidays. The fact that it was Valentine's Day was irrelevant. The years spent with Yumi celebrating Valentine's Day with her friends, and not a lover like everyone else, made it so the holiday was less of a couple's holiday to her, and more of a day spent with friends. So, really, there was no reason why Yumi wouldn't be curious.

Right?

"Are the leeks done?" Yumi asked Touko, walking over to the younger woman and looking over her shoulder.

"Yes, Onee-sama. They are in the bowl by the stove."

"Alright. I'll start the stir-fry."

Touko paused in her cutting to look up. "Shouldn't we cook both dishes at the same time?"

Yumi shook her head, grabbing the two bowls of chopped leek and beef. "No. The egg and tomato should only take a couple minutes. The beef stir-fry takes a few more."

"Ah."

Turning on the gas burner with a satisfying  _click_ , Yumi grabbed a large pan from the cabinet beside the range and set it on the stove. She poured a spoonful of oil on the pan, and waited for it to heat. She could feel Touko's gaze on her back, but ignored it. When cooking like this, Yumi learned quickly not to let herself get too distracted.

When the oil bubbled, Yumi poured the marinating beef, sauce and all, into the pan. The meat began to fry and sauce started to bubble at once, and she leaned back to avoid any oil or sauce that jumped out.

"Is stir-fry always so loud?" Touko asked, suddenly appearing beside Yumi.

Yumi shrugged, giving the meat a few flicks in the pan with a large stirring spoon. "You know what Aya-chan says about Chinese food: the louder is it, the better it tastes."

"That is Chinese restaurants she is referring to." Touko remarked smartly. She leaned in and sniffed the steam rising from the range. "Smells good, though."

Yumi nodded and gestured to the bowl of leeks with her chin. "When the meat darkens, add in the leeks."

"Alright." Touko murmered, grasping the bowl. After a couple minutes, the meet apparently looked dark enough, and Touko tipped the bowl over, adding the leeks to the stir-fry. The green and white vegetables immediately began to soften and color with the sauce.

"Go get me a plate, please, Touko." Yumi said, carefully stirring with the spoon.

Touko retrieved a large plate from the cabinet and returned to Yumi. After another few minutes of cooking and simmering, the stir-fry was ready and Yumi tipped the food onto the plate, which Touko brought to the kitchen table.

"Now the egg and tomato, right?" Touko asked as Yumi quickly rinsed off the still-hot pan.

"Yup. The rice should be finished in a few minutes and then we can eat." She set the pan back on the range and went to retrieve the tomatoes and egg mixture. "While I do this, why don't you prepare something to drink?"

"Very well. We are eating Chinese, so why don't we drink tea?"

Yumi laughed as the pan started to heat up again. "How original. That sounds lovely, Touko." She began the eggs and tomato, and heard Touko prepare the tea in the background. The two women worked silently for a few moments, and Yumi was about to finished the eggs when Touko called from the table.

"Onee-sama?"

Yumi turned halfway round to look at Touko, but making sure to keep an eye on her food to make sure it didn't burn. "Hmm?"

Touko had just set down the kettle of water, along with two cups with a jar of tea leaves, and was standing beside the table, looking out over the kitchen away from Yumi. She didn't reply at first, and Yumi was about to turn back to the eggs when Touko visibly sighed, her shoulders falling deeply.

"Nothing. Just do not burn the eggs."

Yumi snorted and turned back to the stove. The eggs and tomato looked done. "No problem, Touko." She said, shutting off the gas.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 3**

"Well, that turned out better than I planned." Yumi sighed, setting down her chopsticks on her plate and leaning on the table with her elbows, a cup of warm tea cradled in her hands.

"Indeed." Touko said, nodding. A matching cup of tea was also in her hands, which she drank from slowly. Her eyes wandered around the room, resting on different places. Yumi noticed that the younger woman had been watching the room all evening during dinner. The doorway, the wall, the table, the fridge behind Yumi to the left, and the counter on the other side. Everywhere in the kitchen.

Everywhere except Yumi herself.

"The stir-fry could have used more ingredients, I think." She said, her tone thoughtful. "But the egg and tomato was a success." Touko nodded, her eyes flicking towards Yumi for a moment before returning to the window. After a few seconds Yumi continued. "But it was my first time trying stir-fry with leek, so I wasn't sure how the whole thing would cook with the marinade. I'll have to experiment to see what would mix with leek well next time."

"You could ask around." Touko said. "Rei-sama might have an idea. If she doesn't, then I'm sure someone else might."

"True." Yumi agreed. "It was just a nice thing to try for myself first."

"Mmm." Touko mumbled, taking another drink from her tea. Yumi suppressed a sigh and took a sip from her cup. It was about time she said something. If Touko wasn't going to, anyway.

"Touko." She said softly. The younger woman blinked and looked back towards Yumi, curiosity in her eyes. "What's wrong?"

Touko seemed to stiffen. "Onee-sama?" She asked, blinking again.

"You wanted to talk to me about something?" Yumi guessed. Touko's face faltered slightly and she looked away.

"How did you know?"

Yumi shrugged. "I've known you for a long time, Touko. I know when something is bothering you."

Touko scoffed. "Only you can tell, Onee-sama. Everyone else never notices."

"And that's how it'll stay." Yumi said decidedly. "I don't want anyone else getting in your head, after all."

A small smile appeared on Touko's face, but disappeared almost as fast as it appeared. She continued to stare out the window for a long moment, not speaking. Yumi calmly sat across from her, sipping at her tea. If Touko wanted to talk, Yumi knew, then she would talk. If she didn't, then not even Yumi could get her to before she was ready.

Eventually, Touko straightened in her seat and looked at Yumi, a determined look in her dark eyes. "I want to talk to you about Maya Sagara-san."

Yumi's cup froze on its way to her mouth. Her eyes shot open and focused on Touko. Her back stiffened and her stomach lurched, a fully uncomfortable feeling considering Yumi had just finished eating.

"What?" She asked carefully.

"Maya Sagara-san." She repeated. "I want to talk to you about her."

Yumi set down her cup of tea and took a breath, a million reasons why Touko would want to talk about Maya flying through her mind. The more mundane being she simply wanted to ask if Yumi had seen or heard from her since that first weekend. The most prevalent being… something Yumi couldn't quite fathom. It was clear, though, that Touko was bothered by something. Why else would she choose now, with this slightly uncomfortable atmosphere, to bring up the topic?

"Alright. What about her did you want to talk about?"

Choosing her words carefully, Touko spoke slowly. "Have you… seen much of her recently?"

Yumi shrugged. "Not too much. She and I had lunch together a few days ago."

"And… before that?" Touko persisted.

"We had tea the week before." Yumi replied, her tone cooling noticeably. "What is this about?"

Touko faltered, her face suddenly tightening. After a few moments, she opened her mouth. "I have seen her picture, Onee-sama. I know what she looks like. I know…  _who_ … she looks like."

The anxiety that threatened to spring up as Touko was talking came in full force. Yumi's heart pumped painfully in her chest. Her stomach churned, the food she just finished eating all but staying down. Her back shivered and her hands trembled, still gripping her cup tightly between her palms.

"Oh." Yumi said, not quite sure what else she could manage. She swallowed, setting her cup on the table as gently as she could. She sat there, wilting under Touko's gaze for a long moment, until she finally let out a sigh. "Mind if we talk and clean at the same time?"

"Very well." Touko said, standing up and grabbing her plate.

"I'll start washing and you bring the dishes." Yumi said, making her way to the sink, which was already half full of cookery. She reached the sink and turned on the water. Grabbing a sponge and a pan, she began to scrub. "So, what exactly did you want to talk about, then?"

Touko set her plate a safe distance away from the sink, but still within Yumi's reach, and cleared her throat. "I know you have your own life, Onee-sama, and your own private matters…" She turned around and walked back to the table. "But in this case, I thought it would be best to talk to you directly."

"When did you first find out?" Yumi asked.

"A few days after you first told me about her. I purchased one of her books and noticed the similarity."

Yumi stopped scrubbing, suddenly remembering. "Ah. That day in the mall. So you didn't really look for a reference book for your class?"

"I'm afraid that was a lie, Onee-sama. I'm sorry. I thought that if I told you I was going to buy one of Sagara-sensei's books, you would think I was trying to pry into your life more than you wanted."

"I see." Yumi simply said, putting the finished pan to the side and picking up Touko's plate. "So, you know who she looks like. What did you want to discuss?"

Touko set down another plate –Yumi's plate- next to the sink, a bit rougher than she would have otherwise, and sighed sharply. "Onee-sama, you should  _know_  what I want to discuss." She said, her tone heavy.

"Well obviously, I do not, Touko." Yumi snapped, sarcasm leaking into her own voice. "Why don't you enlighten me?"

It was another few seconds before Touko spoke again. When she did, she spoke softly and quietly. "Is the reason you are getting closer to Sagara-san because… she looks like  _her_?"

"No." Yumi answer sharply, not looking away from the plate she was scrubbing.

Touko didn't say anything for a long minute. Instead, she walked back to the table and returned with another few plates. She set them down, more gently than before, and sighed. "Onee-sama, I know you. I like to think I know you better than anyone. And I know that you miss her—"

"I'm sorry." Yumi cut Touko off. "Are we talking about Maya-san or  _her_?"

Touko blinked a few times, taken off by her grande soeurs sudden mood shift. "Both, Onee-sama."

Yumi took a sharp, deep breath and set her plate down into the sink loudly, turning around to face Touko. The younger girl took a half-step back, her face taut and gaze unblinking. "Both?" Yumi repeated. Touko nodded. "How does  _she_ have anything to do with Maya-san except that they look a little similar?"

"They don't look  _a little_  similar, Onee-sama." Touko said softly. "They look  _exactly_  the same."

"And how does that matter at all?" Yumi bit out, putting her wet hands on her hips.

"It matters, Onee-sama… because of how you feel about her." She paused. "About Sachiko-sama."

"I don't  _feel_  anything about her, Touko." Yumi said harshly. "That ended long ago."

"I know, Onee-sama. I know." Touko said softly, her eyes shifting away from Yumi and back to her just as quickly. "It's just—"

"Just what?"

"It's just… too big of a coincidence." She paused, watching Yumi for a reaction. When there was none, Touko continued. "I mean… they look  _exactly_  alike, Onee-sama. It's almost like they are the same person."

"Maya-san and Sachiko-san are not the same person, Touko." Yumi said, her eyes narrowing. "They are two very different people. They look the same, yes. They even sound similar if you want to know the truth. But if you spend more than a few minutes with her, it's painfully clear that she, definitely, is  _not_  Sachiko Ogasawara."

Touko nodded stiffly. "I know, Onee-sama. But, can you tell me something?"

Yumi sighed roughly through her nose, turning back to the dishes. She picked up one of the chopping knives Touko used to cut the vegetables and began to scrub it. "What is it?" She muttered darkly.

There was a long silence before it was broken. "Was the fact that she looked like Sachiko-sama the real reason you wanted to spend more time with Sagara-san?"

Yumi whirled back on Touko, her eyes wide and her teeth bared. "They are  _not_  the same person, Touko!" She hissed harshly. She leaned in closer to Touko, her anger spiking as she did. "Maya-san is  _nothing_  like Sachiko—Nothing! The fact that they look alike has nothing to do with me wanting to spend more time with her! Sachiko is gone and never coming back. You know just as well as I do that it's over!"

Before Yumi even realized it, Touko has taken multiple steps back, her mouth tightly shut and her hands clenched at her sides. Her eyes were wide and taut, but they weren't focused on Yumi. Instead, they were drawn to the knife in Yumi's hand, trembling slightly with the tension in her fingers. Yumi slowly looked down at the knife, and then back up at Touko. The younger girl brought her gaze up from the knife to Yumi's face, her own expression turned stony.

Suddenly realized what kind of situation they were now in, Yumi turned back to the sink and dropped the knife in with a loud  _clang_. She leaned hard on the counter and shut her eyes, her heart thumping loudly in her ears. For a long time, the two women stood apart, silence reigned in the kitchen. Yumi tried to take deep, steady breaths, even though she knew it would do little to help at this time. She didn't hear Touko move or speak, and knew the other was likely just as unsettled as she was.

Eventually, Yumi heard Touko approach and felt the woman's arms wrap tentatively around her shoulders. Yumi tensed up reflexively, but then relaxed as Touko stood behind her. The younger woman tightened her grip around Yumi and rested her head against the back of Yumi's, her breath warming the base of her neck.

"I'm sorry." Yumi whispered quietly, her anger all but forgotten in lieu of shame. "I didn't mean to—"

"I know, Onee-sama." Touko said, just as softly. "It doesn't matter."

"It does matter, Touko." Yumi said, her voice trembling. "I am your grande soeur. I need to be the responsible one."

Touko sniffed a laugh. "Yes, you are my grande soeur. You need to be the responsible one. And I am your petite soeur. I need to support you and be there for you." She paused, taking a breath. Yumi shivered against Touko's breath behind her neck. "And not doubt you. I'm sorry. I won't bring up Maya Sagara-san again."

Yumi pulled herself out of Touko's embrace and turned around to look at her. Touko was meekly standing there, her eyes pointedly looking at the floor, slightly pink from the telltale sign of tears. Gently, Yumi leaned forward and kissed Touko's forehead.

"Thank you for worrying about me. I can't tell you how that makes me feel. You are everything to me, Touko."

Sniffing again, Touko smiled and nodded, leaning her head forward to rest on Yumi's chest. "I know, Onee-sama." She said, her voice slightly muffled from Yumi's shirt. "You mean so much to me… I was just worried."

"You don't have to worry about me all the time." Yumi said, this time reaching her own arms around Touko, embracing her. "I'm a big girl now. I can take care of myself." Touko giggled lightly against Yumi's chest. "So, don't worry about how I deal with Maya-san. Alright?"

"Alright, Onee-sama." Touko said, leaning further into Yumi. "But if you ever want to talk…"

"I know exactly who to come to." Yumi finished, hugging Touko tightly. "My cute, overworked, little sister."

Touko snorted tiredly. "No matter how cute or overworked I am, my door is always open for you."

Yumi pulled back and winked down at her soeur. "Good to know."

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 4**

"You know now that I think about it, it's been a while since I saw Aya-chan." Yumi said as she pulled her coat on over her nightshirt, wrapping it around her body. Her bare legs would get cold, but she wouldn't be outside long. She was just going to see Touko off and run right back inside where it was warm.

Touko, standing beside her, was putting on her own dark red coat. "Yes, she said as much. When I saw her last, she mentioned an interest in seeing you." She leaned down and picked up her purse, holding it in her hand instead of looping the strap over her shoulder.

Yumi tried to smile, but after what had happened in the kitchen earlier, it was difficult to manage. She still felt pretty bad about yelling at Touko. "Then why don't you ask her if she wants to come on Friday night with you? Or Saturday? We could spend the whole day together."

Touko considered that for a moment. "Well, Friday night could work. And perhaps Saturday morning, too. But the two of us are busy a little after lunch through the entire evening."

Yumi's face fell. While spending the evening, and perhaps the morning, with Touko and Aya sounded like a dream come true, the idea that the two of them were busy with something after seemed more than a little off-putting to her. "Oh… I see." She said, slightly disappointed but just as determined not to let it show. Though, knowing Touko, she definitely noticed anyway. "What are you two up to?"

Touko sighed, shaking her head tiredly. "Just someone's birthday party, Onee-sama. One of my father's business associates is celebrating his forty-sixth birthday, and my father being who he is was naturally required to attend." She snorted airly. "And myself being my father's daughter am also required to go. Though, truthfully, I would much rather visit the dentist and have all my teeth removed than waste time having my mother and father introduce me to potential suitors, but…" She sighed, shrugging. "And you remember how Aya loves these functions. She would be crushed if I didn't take her."

Yumi smiled knowingly, nodding. Aya, much like Yumi, hadn't been born with the same kind of family ties Touko and Suguru had. Where she and Aya grew up with small birthday parties with a few friends and an in-home gathering, Touko had been raised with dressing up and attending large, lavish parties. When Aya had first been brought along with Yumi to Touko's eighteenth birthday party... well, suffice it to say Aya had never missed another fancy party since.

"That sounds fun." Yumi remarked, smiling softly.

Touko shook her head. "Fun is a relative term, Onee-sama. You were right to not attend one in the past five years. They are dreadfully boring." She crossed her arms over her chest and looked towards the door. "You remember how it goes; dinner, mingling, dancing, speeches, the—"

"Dancing!" Yumi exclaimed suddenly, her eyes growing with realization. Touko leaned back in surprise, blinking rapidly.

"W-what?" She asked.

"Dancing!" Yumi repeated her excitement returning in full force. "That's right! I completely forgot about the dancing!" Her mood drastically changed with the sudden idea, and she reached out to grasp at Touko's free hand. "Can I come with you and Aya-chan?"

Touko blinked again, her mouth hanging open a few centimeters. Her lips shut, opened again soundlessly. Eventually, she found her voice and her face took on a look of concentration. "Onee-sama… you haven't gone to a party in years." She said simply. "And you suddenly want to go now?"

Yumi nodded quickly. "Absolutely! I mean, I still think they are super boring, of course. But I mean, I haven't gone with you and Aya-chan in a long time. I think it might be fun after so long."

Touko eyed Yumi for a few quiet moments, not saying anything. Yumi didn't let the silence deter her. The sudden realization that she could practice dancing in a real setting, instead of in her own living room, before teaching Maya was just too perfect to miss.

After a long minute, Touko sighed. "You really want to go?" She asked.

Again, Yumi nodded. "Yea. I haven't gone in a while. Not only that, but I haven't seen your parents in a while, too, right?" Touko nodded in agreement. Yumi grinned, this time genuinely, and gripped Touko's hand tighter. "So there we go! It'll be perfect!"

Touko's eyebrow arched high into her bangs. "Onee-sama, do you even have a dress you can wear?"

With that question thrust in her face, Yumi faltered. She  _did_  have a few dresses… but all of them were in storage, and pretty dated at that. She certainly couldn't wear the dress she wore to a  _wedding_  before… or –god forbid—that taffeta monstrosity that she wouldn't be caught dead in. Now that she thought about it… Yumi hadn't even worn a dress in years.

Seeing the look on Yumi's face, Touko sighed again and gripped the older woman's hands with her own. "You can borrow one of mine, Onee-sama." She said. Yumi looked back up at Touko, a smile returning to her face. "I mean, it's what you usually do, right? We may as well keep up with the tradition." She looked over Yumi's covered form with an appraising eye. "I'm sure I have something that can turn some heads on Saturday."

Yumi laughed, pulling her hands and playfully hitting Touko on the shoulder. "Oh, you!" She exclaimed. Touko rolled her eyes and turned towards the door.

"Anyway, I'll talk to Aya about Friday and Saturday. I'm sure she'll say yes."

"Sounds good." Yumi said brightly. "I'll look forward to it."

Touko nodded and opened the door, causing Yumi to shiver slightly as the freezing air seeped in and blew past her bare legs. Maybe she should have gone to get some leggings, after all. Oh well, too late now.

"Good night, Onee-sama." Touko said softly, turning back towards Yumi and smiling.

Yumi opened her mouth to reply with a good night of her own, but then was struck with a new thought.

"Hey… can you stay the night tonight?" She asked suddenly. Touko stopped, her eyes widening in surprise.

"Onee-sama?"

Yumi shifted her coat around her body, trying in vain to pull the bottom over her legs. "I mean, it's kind of late and all..." She said, her voice getting softer as she talked. "And you would be driving in the dark."

"I have classes tomorrow." Touko pointed out, but it was clear she did it halfheartedly.

"You had a class today, technically." Yumi retorted, holding back a laugh. True, the doctoral student had two of her classes cancelled today, but the third she had simply not gone to. It would be simple to… just not go to her classes again tomorrow, too. Right?

Touko seemed to understand what Yumi was hinting at and shook her head, a smirk on her lips. "You are trying to teach me bad habits, Onee-sama." She said. Then she peered at her watch and pursed her lips. "Well, my first class is at eight tomorrow morning on the west side of campus. If I  _were_  to stay here—" She looked pointedly at the older woman in front of her. "Then I would have to leave around six-thirty in time to go to my dorm room, change, and make it to class."

Yumi shifted again under Touko's gaze and shrugged, her smile turning guilty. "So… is that too early for you?"

Touko watched Yumi for a few seconds, and then sighed loudly, shutting the door. "Well, it is pretty late, I suppose." She said, putting her purse back down on the stand by the coat rack. "However, if my Onee-sama feels that it would be safer for me to stay here instead of driving in the dark… then far be it for me to say no."

Yumi giggled and stepped back up into the hallway, sticking her tongue out at Touko. "Oh, you know wanted to stay, anyway."

Touko slipped out of coat and shrugged, her trademark smirk gracing her lips. "If you like, Onee-sama."

0 – 0 – 0

**_From the Diary of Yumi Fukuzawa: Entry 10_ **

_Let me start of by saying that Touko Matsudaira is the most important person in my life. She is my sister. My true sister. Not some woman that would only stay in my life for a few years and then go on her own separate path. Not a girl who chose to accept my rosary in high school and then would forget about me as the years passed. She also wasn't just a girl who I wanted to be with on a whim. I may do many things on the spur of the moment, but making Touko my soeur definitely wasn't one of them._

_I love Touko more than anything. And I know that she loves me too. It was something I came to understand as we spent more and more time together since we became soeurs. As the years went on after I graduated we had our up and downs, our mistakes and our successes. But everything we had together just made us closer. Everything just made me love her more, and her likewise._

_Which is most likely why I feel so horrible about the things I've done to her. I don't deserve a person like her._

_After I graduated and Onee-sama left for England, Touko changed. She was always independent, smart, helpful and perfect in every way. That's just who she was, and who I wasn't. I like to think I had a hand in that when she was a second year and I was serving as Rose Chinensis. Maybe that was true, or maybe not. But after Onee-sama left and I started… well… behaving like I was, Touko put all her independent, perfect effort into helping me._

_Everything else took a lower priority to me, and my health and happiness, in Touko's eyes. She didn't seem to care about much of anything else except spending all of her available time by my side. That first summer, she spent entirely with me. She barely went home, and when she did she only went back for a few hours at a time—never a whole night or day. She spent every night with me in my room, making sure I ate properly, bathed, talked on occasion, and was generally healthy. It was shocking for me to see her so devoted to something, even something like myself._

_When summer ended and Touko was forced to attend her final year at Lillian, she did so with obvious hesitation. It was as though, given the choice, she would have rather spent all her time by my side instead of attending school. But, mostly in part to her family, my family, and myself all but commanding her to, she finally acquiesced to return to Lillian Academy._

_Every day after school, however, she would arrive without fail to spend the rest of the day with me. Touko had many different responsibilities; as a student, a daughter, and a member of society. But she just about threw every responsibility she had away in favour of staying with me. She was still Rosa Chinensis—and a good one at that. But she was only at Lillian when she had to be, and was therefore not present nearly as often as Nana-chan and Noriko-chan. She was still the only daughter of the Matsudaira's, but she practically lived with me full-time._

_It was when I had to leave for university that she finally started to distance herself from me. I had to start going to school again, and would therefore leave my home and go out on my own. By that time I was almost feeling myself again. With the help of my friends, Suguru, my family and Touko, I was able to step out of my self-imposed isolation and start being a person again._

_Touko still visited me whenever she could spare the time. Almost every afternoon she would leave Lillian and arrive at my campus, waiting for me to finish my later classes and staying until late at night, more often than not staying the night in my dorm and leaving before the sun even rose the next morning. It was all I could do to keep my and Suguru's relationship a secret from Touko's almost overbearing presence._

_Even with how often she was around, though, Touko was never unwanted. I loved her more and more each day. She helped me from the moment Onee-sama left, without fail, up until I was myself again and beyond. She was less of a soeur and more of a real sister to me, and I could not have wished for a better person to be a part of my life._

_A couple years after Onee-sama left, I had found myself happier than I had been in a long time. I was doing well in school, Touko was happy and I things were going well with Suguru. My mother, father and Yuuki were sure I was getting over what had happened, and Yoshino-san and Shimako were their usual supportive selves, taking time to see me when we could all pull away from family matters and schoolwork. Things were going well, and I was finally feeling good about myself._

_Then Suguru asked me to marry him, and as a result, I pushed him back out of my life._

_I was forced back down to the depths of despair. My happiness and self-worth were torn apart and I was left with practically nothing. Suguru meant more to me than I really understood at the time we broke up, and I never realized it until that first month we weren't together._

_Touko still was with me as often as she could spare, and I still had my friends and family. But that wasn't really what I wanted. I didn't want friends, or family. I wanted love. I wanted a relationship. I wanted closeness. While the two of us were gay and wouldn't really be together in that way… I was still happy with Suguru. And now that he was out of the picture, the need for closeness and the gaping hole left without him was too much for me to bear._

_A couple months after he was gone, I tried to commit suicide._

_I tried, I really tried to function normally. But the empty feeling he left me with just grew and grew inside me until I couldn't stand it anymore. Touko noticed the change in me at once, only a few days after Suguru. She thought I was just suffering a relapse from Onee-sama due to some recent stimuli, or something… and I let her believe it. It was partially right, at least._

_She tried to help at first. She took more time from her own schoolwork and life to spend more time with me, but it only seemed to make the feeling worse. Onee-sama left because I wasn't good enough. Suguru was gone because he pitied me and I wouldn't have it. And now Touko was suffering because of my weakness. I was a burden to everyone. Everyone would be better off if I was gone._

_Sachiko would be fine without me. She was long-gone anyway._

_Suguru would be happier without me to pity._

_Touko would finally be free of me as a burden to carry._

_And I would finally be free of this nightmare of being unwanted. Unneeded. Unloved._

_I had heard of many different ways to kill yourself; from the television… from the internet… even from word of mouth here and there. Overdosing on medication… asphyxiation… what have you. It certainly wasn't a lack of ideas that made me hesitate. Really, it must have been fear that slowed me down. I was always a fraidy-cat, after all. The fear of dying was probably what stopped me until Touko finally arrived on the scene._

_Her startled gasp was the first thing I heard. I knew who it was at once, but it didn't distract me. The box-cutter I was holding (one I used often to sharpen my pencils) was keeping all my attention focused away from everything else. It shook horribly in my hand, as if it had a mind of its own and wasn't sure how to proceed. Before I realized it, Touko had rushed to me and wrenched the knife from my grip. I felt her fingers try and pry my hands away from the handle, and suddenly, my senses flared._

_Why was she here? Why did she care? Why did anybody care? Why wouldn't they just let me be? Why couldn't I do what I wanted? Everyone would be so much better without me. I was just doing everyone a favour. I should be gone. Gone! Gone gone gone!_

_GonegonegonegonegonegonegoneGONE!_

_I heard myself scream, half in fear and half in angry frustration. Touko tried to pull the knife away from me. I tried to pull it back. I leapt back, trying to get away from Touko, but she was faster than I was. She clambered after me, keeping a firm grip on the knife. We rolled around on the floor, both pulling at the knife and trying to wrestle each other away. Neither of us seemed to get the upper hand on each other, and even after a full minute, the fight remained unchanged._

_Eventually, I noticed that my cries and yells turned to sobs. I cried, my vision blurring, and stopped trying to fight against Touko. I rolled off of her to the side and let go of the knife, doing my best to curl up into a ball. I held my legs and cried. I cried hard. I couldn't even tell you how loudly or pathetically I cried. Not because I am embarrassed or ashamed… but because I simply don't remember. I didn't even cry that badly when Onee-sama left. I felt… well… like I wanted to die._

_"Onee-sama…" Touko said loudly enough for me to hear. I could tell through her heavy, trembling voice that she was crying, too. I could only imagine how she must have felt then. "I want you to count to one-hundred. You—"_

_"No!" I wailed, pushing myself up on my hands and facing her. "No more counting! No more waiting!" I could barely make out her face through my blurry vision. She looked just as upset as she sounded. Her eyes were red and wide. Her hair was loose and her shirt was askew—likely from our fight on the floor. I was sure I looked even worse. "I can't stand it anymore, Touko! I hate it! All of it!" I wasn't sure if Touko knew exactly what I was talking about, but I really didn't care at that point. "All this time, all this time was just a lie! All of it! I'm not better at all! I can't do anything at all on my own!"_

_"Onee-sama, all it takes is time." Touko said softly, reaching out to my face. I raised my hand and smacked hers away._

_"How much time, Touko?!" I cried. "How much time do I have to live like this? How much time do I have to spend every day unwanted, unloved, with no one to stay with me?!"_

_Touko blinked, her face tight and her cheeks red. "I'll stay with you, Onee-sama." She said, pleadingly. "Forever."_

_"It's not the same!" I screamed, shutting my eyes and clenching my hands as tightly as I could. "It's not the same! I want… I want…" I stammered, searching for something—anything—to make myself understood._

_"Onee-sama…" Touko whispered. She looked at the floor, her shoulders twitching as she cried._

_"I want to die, Touko." I finally said after a long moment. Her head snapped up and she looked as though I had slapped her. "I don't want to live like this anymore. I want…"_

_"Onee-sama, please." Touko said, her voice gaining more strength. "Don't say things like that."_

_"Why not?!" I shrieked. My anger returned in full force as I remembered that Touko tossed my knife away. "Everyone would be better if I were gone, wouldn't they? Onee-sama wouldn't miss me! My family would have to worry about me anymore! Even you wouldn't have to carry me as a burden anymore!"_

_"Onee-sama, that is not true at—"_

_Before Touko finished what she was saying, I lunged to the side. The box cutter was a few feet away, and I reached it easily enough. Touko was still faster than me, though, and before I could even get a good grip on it, she grabbed my arm with a firm grip. I cried and screamed, rolling around so that I ended up on top of Touko, both my legs straddling her. She tried to grab at my hands, but with the knife there she couldn't get a safe grip._

_Before I even realized what I had done, I was staring down at Touko, my heart stopping in my chest. She stared back up at me, her face pale and her mouth set in a tight line. Her hands gripped my arms, but were unmoving as I sat atop her, my own hands frozen in place._

_The knife, which I had intended to end my own life with, had stuck soundly in my little sisters shoulder, just above her right breast and below the collarbone. Her shirt had torn at the neck so I could see clearly where I had struck. I stared dumbly at the knife as it sunk in Touko's skin, blood already beginning to seep around the steel. Touko didn't say anything. She didn't cry out in pain, she didn't scream at me, she didn't move at all. She just lay there under me, staring up at my face, tears leaking from her dark eyes._

_"T-Touko…" I managed, my mouth drier that I ever thought possible. What had I done? I… attacked my sister. With a knife. Just what kind of person—no—thing was I? I now, more than ever, deserved to die. "I… What…"_

_"Onee-sama." Touko whispered softly, no hint of pain or anger in her voice. "It's ok."_

_I did the first thing I could think of and pulled the knife out, my stomach churning at the feeling of the blade sliding out of her shoulder. I threw the knife away—far away—and looked back down at Touko, fresh tears springing to my eyes. "Touko—" I whimpered, reaching out to her face. I was afraid she would pull away from my touch, but she didn't even move. I felt her cheek and wanted to cry even harder. "I… I don't know what I want anymore."_

_Touko nodded, almost unnoticeably. She didn't say anything, or maybe couldn't… I don't know. The wound in her shoulder was leaking blood, and I could barely look at it without wanted to retch. But even so, I couldn't move to get up._

_"I… just don't want to be alone." I said, staring down at my sister's face. "I want to be loved. I want—I want—" My head lowered, my eyes closed, and before I even noticed my actions, I leaned down and kissed Touko. I kissed my sister. I don't even know why, to this day, why I did what I did… but I still did._

_I would have stopped. I would have leapt off of Touko and apologized right there on the floor. For my actions, for hurting her, and for being so stupid. All of the above. I would have stopped everything._

_But, before I could even do anything, Touko kissed me back. She pressed up against my mouth with her own, matching my kiss with an equally forceful one of her own. It didn't last very long, and we broke apart momentarily only to meet again, our lips pressing together more fervently than before._

_I knew it was wrong. She was my petite soeur, and we knew what our relationship was… what it always had been. I knew I should have stopped. I should have been the responsible one and set rules and boundaries._

_But at the moment, with her underneath me and meeting me with an equal show of passion… I didn't care._

_Someone was loving me. Someone was staying with me. Someone was needing me. That's what I wanted. Even if it was Touko. Even if it was my little sister. Even if it shouldn't be…_

_I wanted it._

_I'm writing this down in my diary so that I never forget. I can never take back what I did that night with Touko. I can never undo it, and therefore I can never allow myself to forget it. This is proof of what kind of person I am. I am a person that doesn't deserve someone like her. Touko is one of the greatest women I have ever met, or will ever meet. She can do anything, be anyone, and achieve anything she sets her mind to._

_That's why that night, at that time with Touko, with what I did to her… I know I will never be able to forgive myself._

_It wasn't my first time being intimate, but it was most likely Touko's. As the older, more experienced one, I should have done what I could to make her first time memorable, and positive._

_But I was not gentle. I was not sweet. I was not pleasant lover for her. I did things to Touko that I never even dared to do with Onee-sama. We never set her shoulder wound. Blood continued to leak from her cut for a good hour until it dried. I don't think either of us noticed. If she was bothered by her shoulder, she never once mentioned it. In fact, she never once complained about anything. I did horrible things to her that night. I hit her, I scratched her, I bit her, I cursed her, I made her do things for me while I did all of the above..._

_But not once did she refuse. She never complained, never said anything negative, and always did what I told her to._

_She was the perfect little sister all throughout._

_… I am the worst person in the world._

_AAAAHHHHHH!-!-!-!_

_…_

_The next morning, I woke up to find Touko cleaning and stitching her shoulder wound by herself with a portable sewing kit. I would have been impressed if I wasn't so ashamed of myself. She didn't say anything as she worked, even after noticing I was awake. For a long time I sat in bed, staring at the wall, trying to make sense out of my actions, Touko's actions, and what we had done. Nothing helped, and only made me feel even worse._

_Touko eventually finished fixing her shoulder, and got dressed as silently as she had been all morning. She ended up borrowing one of my shirts. She gathered her bag and began to walk towards the door out of the dorm. Before she left she turned back towards the room, watched me for a few quiet seconds, and then said, "I'll be back after my classes today. Please wait for me, Onee-sama."_

_With that she left, the door barely making a noise as it shut._

_I didn't go to classes that day, nor did I even leave my room. I didn't get dressed, or eat anything. I didn't watch television or read, or do any schoolwork. I just lay in my bed feeling horrible with myself. I was useless to everyone, I was unwanted by the world… and the only person who actually meant anything to me likely hated me now. Just what was there for me anymore?_

_Touko came back later that afternoon, and informed me that a classmate of hers put her in touch with a doctor; a psychiatrist named Emi Kimigura. She didn't tell me to go see Kimigura-sensei, nor did she suggest I should go. Touko simply asked if I wanted to go._

_After a long time, during which Touko sat right beside me as I cried, her hand in mine as I lay in bed, I finally agreed to go see the psychiatrist._

_We never mentioned what happened that night. We never talked about it again. After I agreed to go meet Emi Kimigura, it was as if what had happened simply never was. Touko acts as if it never happened, and as a result… so do I._

_Touko still has the scar, but she hides it well enough. On the odd occasion its noticed and she is asked about it, she claims it was an accident in the hospital. But I know it is a lie. It was me that did that to her. I attacked Touko with a knife and she… she completely accepted it as if it was natural for her to do as my soeur._

_I don't truly know how Touko felt about what happened that night, either. The things I did to her. The things I said to her. They were things I should have never done to anyone, let alone Touko. Does she hate me? Does she feel that I am a burden? Does she want me to go away, but will never say so out of duty as my soeur? I just don't know._

_Even now, years after, I still haven't worked up the courage to apologize to her for everything. Perhaps I never will. Perhaps we will continue to ignore what happened until we are old and grey, and barely even able to remember it at all._

_If that's the case… then so be it. I am fine with remembering that she is simply my sister… and that I love her with all my heart._

_Touko Matsudaira is my whole world. She saved my life, and I don't deserve someone like her. But even so, even with how angry she might be at me and spends day after day, year after year hiding it… I hope she knows how much I love her._

_And that is the absolute truth._

0 – 0 – 0

_End of chapter 11_


	12. Chapter 12

**The Princess and the Sparrow**

**Chapter 12**

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 1**

_That sounds excellent!_

_I am really looking forward to learning how to dance! It's something I never got the chance to do, so I am excited. Just let me know when you have time available after your party, and I'll make time to meet up with you._

_Thanks so much!_

_Maya :-3_

Yumi smiled as she read Maya's message, her eyes skimming over the words as though every letter was vitally important. In a way, they were. Yumi was, herself, looking forward to teaching someone how to dance just as much as perhaps Maya was in learning it. Maya had seemed elated with Yumi's initial offer, and it seemed as though she was just as positive about the idea now.

After making plans with Touko to go to the birthday party (she still didn't know  _whose_  party she would be attending – but there was time to ask later), she had sent Maya a message detailing the new developments. She would go to the party, recall what dancing skills she had lost over the few years she hadn't practiced, and then teach Maya what she could. In reality she probably wouldn't be a good a teacher as, say, Touko or Rei… but damn it, Yumi was going to try her best.

If she could be useful to someone, as opposed to always being a burden, then she would consider that a big step in the right direction.

And, certainly, there would be some appeal to spending more time with one Maya Sagara.

 _But,_  Yumi thought as she set her phone on the coffee table in front of her sofa and sat back in the cushions,  _one thing at a time. First things first; remember how to dance before teaching it._

Speaking of which, she realized as she glanced over to the wall clock above the muted television, it was about time for Touko and Aya to arrive for their night with Yumi. She recalled Touko telling her that she would pick up Aya at her home after finishing her work at the hospital, and the pair would pick up something for dinner along the way. And while that meant Yumi couldn't be one-hundred percent sure when they would arrive (though she could estimate), it also meant that she didn't have to cook tonight.

That thought alone caused a wide smile to blossom on Yumi's face as she lay further into her couch, not even bothering to turn up her television as she lounged there. Not having to cook anything… being able to see Touko and Aya… going to a party tomorrow and dancing… Yumi was looking forward to it all. In fact, for the first time in a while, she was in an extremely relaxed, happy mood.

With the quiet din of the television, and the comfort Yumi found herself in while waiting for her sisters to arrive, the young architect's mind slowly started to wander.

…

**_Ding dong!_ **

The sharp ring from her door chime jolted Yumi to attention, her head snapping up from where it lay on a pillow clutch in her arms. The young woman sat up, her senses in slight disarray from sleep, and looked around the room. The television was still on, casting its silence light through the dim room. Her phone was still on the table. The hallway light was on just outside the room, causing yellow light to spill in from the entryway. Her living room was still the same as always.

Pushing herself up on her feet, and wondering idly how long she had been asleep, Yumi trudged out of the room and into the lit hallway, making her way towards the front door. She reached the door and, not even bothering to ask who was there, opened it wide to the cold. Standing on the other side, bags in hand, were Touko and Aya.

"Evening, Yumi-nee-sama!" Aya chirped happily, her voice breaking through the rest of Yumi's sleepiness. The girl hopped up and down excitedly on her toes, her brown eyes sparkling with the reflection off her glasses. "We didn't catch you at a bad time, did we?"

Shaking her head, Yumi stepped to the side to let them inside. "No. I was just taking a nap."

"Aww!" Aya sighed deeply as she entered, bowing slightly to Yumi as she did. "Well, now is the time to wake up, because we come bringing tidings from the pizza gods!" She paused to kick off her sneakers, not bothering to untie them, and walked briskly into the kitchen with her haul. Yumi blinked and turned back towards Touko, who was shaking her head slightly.

"Pizza?" Yumi asked.

"Yes, Onee-sama." Replied Touko, entering the house with a slight bow of her head. "It was my idea, though the beer she brought along was not." She shrugged as she held up a plastic bag, weighed down with the aforementioned cans of alcohol. "That was her idea, and hers alone."

Yumi chuckled, shutting the door behind her soeur. "Pizza and beer. Lovely. And here I was hoping to lose a couple kilos this month."

Touko cast a critical eye over Yumi's thin frame, although hidden in a loose shirt, and scoffed. "If anything, you could stand to gain some weight, Onee-sama. Please excuse me while I put mine and Aya's things in your room."

"We'll be in the kitchen." Yumi called after Touko, grinned, and went after Aya. The younger woman had already unloaded the two pizza boxes and was rummaging through cabinets for crockery. "It's good to see you, Aya-chan."

At Yumi's greeting, Aya spun around and skipped over to Yumi, catching her in a tight hug.

"You too, Yumi-nee-sama!" She chirped.

Yumi started slightly at the sudden show of affection, but then relaxed into the embrace. She wrapped her arms around Aya's shoulders and smiled. "You look well." She added, pushing Aya back to eye the woman at arm's length. She wore a light blue turtleneck sweater, loose-looking beige cargo pants, and pink, fluffy socks. Her hair was pulled up into a messy bun at the back of her head, and her glasses were slightly askew from the hug. "Though… a little frumpy." Yumi said, smirking slightly.

Aya stepped back and huffed, stamping her foot on the floor with a good natured scowl on her face. "Frumpy!" She hissed, her eyes narrowing to slits. "Didn't you wear the same thing like this for, like, four years once?"

Yumi shrugged, stepping past Aya towards the cabinets to finish finding the plates. "Sure, sure. But when I wore that, it looks like I planned to. When you do, it looks like you just rolled out of bed." She giggled at Aya's indignant shriek.

"Aya, what on Earth are you yelling about?" Touko had chosen at the moment to enter the kitchen, sans one sweater. Yumi eyed her soeur's long-sleeved cream-colored blouse for a moment before the woman was leapt upon by Aya.

"Onee-sama!" The other girl cried. "Yumi-nee-sama is being mean to me!"

"Of course she is." Touko said, blinking. "As the oldest of us, and  _my_  Onee-sama, she had every right to be mean to you if she so chooses."

Aya's mouth popped open in shock, prompting Yumi to snort out a laugh, nearly dropping the stack of plates she retrieved from the cabinet. Aya looked from Touko, to Yumi, and then back to Touko. After a few seconds, she stepped back from Touko and sighed.

"I can see what this is." She sighed heavily. "You two are ganging up on me, is that it? Alright, alright." She crossed her arms over her chest. "So let me see it I can understand this correctly. Yumi-nee-sama can be mean to you, Onee-sama, as well as me. And Onee-sama can be mean to me, and Megumi?"

"I can also be mean to Megumi-chan." Yumi pointed out, vaguely remembering Aya's petite soeur from Lillian. She hadn't met the girl very often, having been gone from Lillian before the girl even started as a first year. But, she distinctly remembered a shorter girl with dark eyes and curly hair, blushing madly in the presence of Yumi Fukuzawa, her great-great grande soeur, at a Yamayurikai get-together a couple years back.

"You only met Megumi the once, Yumi-nee-sama…" Aya returned dryly.

Yumi shrugged, setting the plates out beside the boxes of pizza. "So? As the oldest, I have executive power to be mean to whomever I wish."

"As long as they are your junior, Onee-sama." Touko added smartly, dividing up the six cans of beer for the three of them on the counter.

"Which is all of you."

Aya glared at the older girls, dividing up her attention equally as Yumi and Touko busied themselves with the drinks and pizza. Silence reigned in the kitchen for a good minute until, finally, Yumi began to laugh. Yumi's laughter caused Touko to chuckle softly, which needled Aya long enough to break away from her glare into an appreciative grin. Then she, too, joined in on the laughter.

The women continued laughing, all the while divvying up the pizza and drinks. Eventually, the laughter died down and Aya sighed, "God, it's been too long."

Yumi smiled softly at the younger woman. "Not all that long. Only a few weeks or so."

Aya returned Yumi's smile with a wide grin. "A few weeks too long, Yumi-nee-sama."

Yumi shrugged in acquiescence and then nodded towards the hallway. "Come on then, the TV awaits."

Aya squealed happily, holding onto her plate with one hand and snatching a beer as she trailed along after the older woman. "What are we watching?" She asked excitedly.

Yumi hummed in thought as she flicked on the living room light and bent down to set her plate and drink on the knee-high coffee table before turning towards her entertainment system.

Touko, obviously, knew enough about Aya's preferences to head her petite soeur off. "No horror movies, please Onee-sama." She said, earning a low groan form Aya, who just planted herself the couch.

Yumi smirked, eying Touko from across the room. "No? You sure, Touko? Don't wanna see Sadako tonight?" Upon seeing Touko's lips twist into a grimace, and Aya's snicker, Yumi continued. "How about Audition?  _Kiri kiri kiri kiri~_ " Touko hissed her disapproval at Yumi's prodding, her face flushing.

" _Onee-sama!_ "

Aya cackled from the couch, clearly enjoying her grande soeur's discomfort. Until Touko rounded on her— Yumi had never seen someone adopt such a convincing expression of sincere empathy before. It was a little shocking. Convinced that Aya had been properly chastised, Touko turned back towards her grande soeur and crossed her arms over her chest.

"How about a comedy… or something?" She muttered.

Yumi rolled her eyes and grinned. "Sure sure." She said, turning towards the television, but sending the younger woman a sidelong glance, smirking lightly. "Whatever you like, Touko."

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 2**

Yumi was just putting the finishing touches on making her bed (not like she was going to be sleeping in it, of course) when Aya walked into the bedroom, one of Yumi's fluffy white towels around her body, and her wet hair dripping down her back.

"Waa!" She exclaimed, her arms stretched out to wide. "That was a wonderful shower! Your bathroom is so much nicer than mine is, Yumi-nee-sama."

Yumi nodded in affirmation. "Of course it is – I designed it." She said. And it was true; her bathroom, her guest bathroom, her bedroom, guest bedroom, living room and kitchen, all pieces of her home was of her own design. It had taken her months of working in her free time, and more than a few revisions, before she finally decided on the final design of her home, but it had been worth it. "Is Touko taking her shower now?"

"En." Aya responded, squatting down to unzip her overnight bag at the foot of Yumi's bed. "She said she hadn't taken one earlier what with her early morning class and afternoon shift at the hospital."

Yumi grimaced, a pang of guilt shooting through her mind. Touko had woken up extremely early that morning, skipping her usual morning shower in order to make it to her class on time. Yumi had barely even dragged herself out of bed in time to see the younger woman off. As it was, Yumi couldn't get back to sleep after that, and ended up working on the Onoga project the majority of the day.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Aya, who stood up from her back, holding two pieces of brightly colored fabric in each hand.

"What do you think, Yumi-nee-sama? Pink hearts? Or Yellow candies?" She waved them towards Yumi for emphasis.

Yumi blinked.

Panties. Aya was holding up panties.

"Um…"

Snickering, Aya nodded. "Yellow candies it is!" With that she dropped the pink pair back into her bag and stepped into the chosen pair, wiggling her hips and tugging the underwear into place underneath her towel.

Yumi rolled her eyes and sighed. Aya had practically no shame whatsoever. You'd think, as a twenty-five year old woman, with a college degree and a steady job at a successful computer company, that such a girl would have a little more propriety. But, even as a student at Lillian, and later university, Aya had always been a little… overactive at times. She could behave properly in the right company, who that graduated from Lillian couldn't after all? But around those she trusts implicitly… such as Yumi and Touko… well, the gloves were off, apparently.

And she loved to tease her Yumi-nee-sama, knowing it was all in good fun. To Yumi, after all, Aya was her cute little great petite soeur. And that was fine.

Averting her eyes while Aya shed her towel in favor of an oversized nightshirt, Yumi walked to her closet in search of her futons. They didn't take long to find, piled up along the side as they were, and it only took one good tug to know she wouldn't be able to pull them out alone.

"Aya-chan, give me a hand with the futons."

"'Kay!" Aya chirped, sliding over to Yumi, joining her in freeing the futons from the forgotten depths of Yumi's closet. It took three trips to find and place all three beside each other on Yumi's carpeted floor, and Aya enthusiastically offered to get the linens for her.

As she watched Aya of the corner of her eye, Yumi meandered over to her discarded jeans (she had taken a shower first in her own attached bathroom while Touko and her petite soeur cleaned up dinner) and retrieved her mobile phone from her pocket. Flicking the main screen on, she maneuvered to the inbox, and reviewed the messages she received over the past couple of days.

The majority of them were from Touko, of course. It seemed as though, even when apart, she could not stop herself from talking with her petite soeur. They didn't talk about anything in particular in their messages, usually… just random thoughts and words about their days as they progressed.

The occasional message from Yoshino and Shimako were there, although there had been nothing new for the past few days now. Yumi thought about writing a new message to Yoshino, if only to see how she was doing recently, when she saw her recent string of messages with Maya Sagara.

There was… a surprising amount; certainly more at first glance than Yoshino and Shimako. Definitely more than Yuuki. Surprising, since the two siblings exchanged daily messages (sometimes a handful) concerning work-related topics.

All in horrible grammar. Or 'code' as Yuuki once called it.

Baka.

But in just knowing Maya for a few weeks now, Yumi had exchanged so many messages with her that it was just… strange. The only other person she talked so much with, even via messages, was Touko.

 _And Touko is… well… Touko_.

Not only that, but Yumi had  _seen_  Maya in person more than anybody else recently, save Touko. She had met with the older girl at least once or twice a week since their first meeting. And a couple of those had been dates… hadn't they been? Maya never specifically  _said_  they were dates but… they had sure felt like it.

Suddenly, blushing to herself, Yumi remembered words that she had heard years ago, back in university.

_One date—you're just testing the waters. Two dates is confirmation. Three dates? Well, now you're officially going out._

Maya certainly wasn't going out with Yumi… was she?

"Yumi-nee-sama?" Aya called from the floor. Yumi looked up to see that the girl had just finished putting the linens on the futons.

"Hmm?"

"Anything else to get out for tonight?" She gestured towards their sleeping arrangements.

Yumi shook her head. "No, I don't think so. Unless you need anything in particular." Aya nodded and made to stand up. "Hey, uh… Aya-chan?"

The woman blinked up at Yumi from her futon, tilting her head in question.

"How many… um… dates does it take to mean you are dating?"

Aya raised an eyebrow, her glasses slipping down the bridge of her nose. "Haaa?" She vocalized.

Backing up, Yumi waved her hand in front of her face, as if to ward off embarrassment. Well, there was nothing for it now. At least Aya had experienced proper dating—the girl  _had_  had a couple boyfriends in the past, after all, even if she was single now. So if anyone could give her a frame of reference, and not embarrass her in the process, it was her. "I mean… let's say I know this girl… who has been going out with a-"

"Oh my God, Yumi-nee-sama," Aya interrupted, pulling her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them. "Can we not do that? You can just say it's you and not 'some girl you know'."

Feeling a blush creep back into her cheeks, Yumi coughed into her hand. "Ah… right. Well, I have been… hanging out… with this girl for a few weeks now. And…" She shrugged. "I just wanted your opinion on the amount of dates that equal  _dating_. You know?"

Aya cocked her hear to the side. "When you say hanging out…" She trailed off dubiously, waving her hand in a gesture that meant  _and so on and so forth_.

"I-I mean… hanging out." Yumi supplied lamely.

"So  _not_ dating, then."

"Well, I think so." Yumi said, clutching her phone tightly between her fingers. "I mean… they feel like dates. She never specifically said they were dates, but they feel like them."

"Hmm." The young woman leaned back, landing on her back on the futon, her legs flying up in the air. Yumi did her best to ignore the fact that Aya's faded pink night shirt fell down to her hips, giving a full view of her 'yellow candy' panties. "Well, if they aren't specifically called dates… but they  _feel_  like them, I would probably say they are. Then in that case, I would probably say... three dates. I would say three dates before you can say you're  _dating_."

Then she sat up straight, grunting with effort. "But, in my opinion, you have to decide between the two of you that you are dating. If not, well, it's just you being a creeper saying your dating this chick."

Yumi sent a flat stare at the younger woman, eliciting a grin from her as she sat there, sticking her tongue out cheekily.

"Who is a creeper?" Touko asked as she opened the door from the hallway. From the look of her wet, straightened hair and the fact that she already was wearing a long, dark green t-shirt, she had already finished her shower and had just locked up the house.

"Yumi-nee-sama is a creeper." Aya affirmed her grande soeur. Touko halted in her tracks, looking between Aya and Yumi, confused.

"I am not." Yumi grunted, dropping down to her futon, folding her legs underneath herself comfortably. "I just asked how many dates equal  _dating_. I don't want to be a creeper."

"Nobody wants to be a creeper, Yumi-nee-sama." Aya said, shaking her head sadly. "It just happens."

"Right. I'm a creeper, then." Yumi sighed, knowing she should give in now. This was Aya's way of getting back at Yumi for her earlier teasing. Only Aya and Touko was get away with this, after all. It was part of how Yumi spoiled them. But if Yoshino even tried to tease her like this…

_Oohhh…. There would be blood._

"Why is Onee-sama a creeper?" Touko asked, taking her place on her own futon as she ran her fingers through her hair. Aya squealed and scrambled over to her Onee-sama, retrieving a brush from her bag on the way and immediately began to brush the older woman's hair. Touko looked immensely pleased at her soeur's actions.

"Because she is dating-but-not-dating this girl—" Aya cut herself off in mid-sentence, blinking rapidly but still managed to keep brushing Touko's hair. "Onee-sama, do you know about this? This girl that Yumi-nee-sama is seeing?"

Touko and Yumi locked eyes for a moment, and somewhere in the silent exchange between soeurs, Touko learned all she needed to know about the situation.

"Only bits and pieces." Touko said, placing her hands on her lap now that there were free from the monotonous task of brushing out her hair. "Just that Onee-sama is spending more time with a new friend. I am very happy for her. She doesn't do that often enough, so it's very nice to see Onee-sama getting out more and meeting new people." She smiled softly at Yumi, letting her know that she meant every word.

"Yea… but what about the dating thing?" Aya pressed.

"We're… not dating." Yumi muttered aloud, hunching over a little.

"Ehhh…" Aya moved to Touko's other side and continuing working with her hair. "But… do you like her?"

The oldest of the three girls blinked at that.  _Did_  she like Maya? She liked her, sure… but that wasn't that Aya was referring to. Did Yumi…  _like_  her—like that? Sure, she enjoyed her company, and thought she was nice, and polite, and fun to be around, and pretty. It was, all in all, quite a fetching combination. Exactly what one looked for in a potential girlfriend, right?

But, somewhere deep down, Touko's voice from the previous night could be heard, echoing through her mind.

_"Was the fact that she looks like Sachiko-sama the real reason you wanted to spend time with Sagara-san?"_

"I… don't know." Yumi finally admitted quietly, looking down into her lap.

The others were silent for a long time. Yumi could tell they were likely looking at each other, having their own silent conversation that soeurs were able to have. Eventually, Touko cleared her throat.

"Well, regardless of what your relationship is with Sagara-san, Onee-sama, I am still happy that you are meeting new people."

Yumi looked up and smiled softly at Touko's admission, and then glanced at Aya, who blinked and pushed her eyeglasses up her nose.

"Y-yea! Totally, Yumi-nee-sama!" She grinned. "You've been cooped up for too long. You need to get out more."

"That's kind of also why I'm going to the party with you two tomorrow… to get out more." Yumi admitted. At the mention of the party, Aya's eyes lit up with enthusiasm. She scurried back to her own futon and crossed her lags, leaning forward excitedly. On the flip-side, Touko rolled her eyes and leaned back on her futon, gathering her legs underneath her as Yumi had done.

"Oh yea! This is going to be so much fun!" Aya declared. "You haven't been to a party with us in years. They have been so dull without you, Yumi-nee-sama— Oh! I call first dance with you!"

Smiling, Yumi shifted her attention towards Touko, who watched the two with an amused quirk in her mouth. "I think Touko gets that right, as my petite soeur. Don't you?"

Touko's lips parted in surprise, her eyes widening fractionally. Inwardly, Yumi beamed. It just felt  _good_  to get that kind of reaction from the usually stoic woman.

"I… um…" Touko floundered, looking back and forward between Aya and Yumi, clearly torn between pleasing both her soeurs. It was clear that, even if she wanted to dance with Yumi, Aya hadn't had a chance to spend nearly enough time with the oldest of the former red roses.

Finally, Aya sighed morosely and fell back on her futon. "Alright… Onee-sama gets first pick. Boo…" She muttered. After a moment Yumi and Touko looked at each other, Yumi shrugging as if to say  _'She's your soeur'_ , and Touko nodded, giving her older sister a small smile.

Obviously, she was looking forward to their first dance in a while.

"But-!" Aya exclaimed, suddenly sitting back up, her eyes blazing and her finger pointing towards Yumi's nose like a malediction. "If I don't get the  _next_ dance, I will haunt your steps for the rest of your days!"

Yumi blinked. Twice.

"'Kay."

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 3**

"Aaaaand here," Aya said loudly as she walked through the doorway, spinning in a circle with her arms spread out as if she were introducing a grandiose affair, "we have Onee-sama's bedroom! Complete with full-sized bed, a very fetching rose-pink furniture set with vanity, dresser and wardrobe, a walk-in closet filled with an assortment of outfits Onee-sama deems appropriate, a fully equipped master bathroom suite (though not as nice as Yumi-nee-sama's – sorry Onee-sama), aaaand somewhere in the dresser, those naughty things that Onee-sama doesn't want Yumi-nee-sama to find."

She said the last bit very quickly, as if she could get it out fast enough, Touko wouldn't notice. Yumi had to admit, though, seeing Touko's suddenly flustered expression as she glared at her petite soeur was pretty funny.

"Just drop your bag off and go pick out your dress, Aya." Touko muttered, walking over to her bed to drop off her own bag. "Onee-sama," She said, turning back to look at Yumi. "You may put your bag anywhere you like. Can I get you anything?"

Yumi smiled, shaking her head. She walked over to Touko's vanity and placed her bag, smaller than Touko's and Aya's because she was not staying the night, beside it. Taking a look around the room, she was pleased to see that nothing had really changed since her last visit. She had been a little nervous to come to Touko's house again, because the last time she had had been roughly six months ago; far too long for those as close as Yumi and Touko, in her opinion. But, with Yumi being how she was normally (a hermit, apparently), it was unsurprising that Yumi had gone this long without even coming over for a meal, or even greeting Touko's mother and father.

She was determined to change that starting today. First things first – to prepare for the birthday party with her sisters.

"No, thank you, Touko. Your parents already offered, remember?"

Touko blinked, looking down to the carpet. "Yes. But they were so pleased to see you, I am afraid they would have forgotten to actually get you anything had you asked."

Yumi laughed. "Yes, it has been a while since I saw them. Your mother looks much better that before."

"Yes. She was Ill the last time you met." Touko affirmed. "But she has much improved since then."

"I was worried." Yumi admitted, smiling softly as she walked up to Touko. "I am sorry I didn't come by more to see her."

Touko's ears colored slightly as she kept up her staring contest with the floor. "It is fine. You were busy and it was only the flu. It passed uneventfully enough."

Reaching out to cup Touko's chin with her hand, Yumi pulled her soeur's face up so that their eyes met. "That doesn't excuse my behavior recently. I am sorry, Touko." She said, giving the woman a firm, reassuring smile.

Touko swallowed, flicking her gaze between Yumi's left eye to her right, as if she could decide which to look at. Finally she returned Yumi's smile with one of her own. "Apology accepted, Onee-sama." She whispered. The pair stayed like that, only a pace away for a long moment, neither wanting to step away and change to suddenly comfortable atmosphere. Touko hesitated, and then opened her mouth. "Onee-sama… I—"

"Onee-sama?" Aya called from the doorway into Touko's closet.

Yumi and Touko blinked, stepping away from each other and turning to face the closet. "What is it, Aya?" The younger of the two women asked, her tone softer than it usually was. Yumi eyed Touko for a moment, noting her lowered eyes and pink flush on her cheeks, but stepped fully away from her soeur to return to her dropped bag back at the vanity, squatting down to retrieved her earlier chosen cosmetics from within.

"I can't decide between the white sleeveless dress, and the green gown. Can you help me, please?" Yumi heard Aya mutter from the closet. Touko sighed heavily and padded over to join her, clearly at odds by wanting to stay with Yumi, but also wanting to help Aya pick out her dress.

As Yumi picked out the make-up she wanted to use, she listened to the two younger women murmur back and forth between each other—whether Aya would look better in white, which would complement her lighter skin tone more, or the green, which would bring out the brown of her eyes and hair for a more 'earthy' effect. Yumi secretly thought she would look better in a burgundy color, or dark yellow for a warmer tone, but she kept her opinion to herself. She didn't want to interrupt the two any further than she had.

"Yumi-nee-sama!"

Yumi turned her heard at Aya's call, placing her hand protectively over her cosmetics on Touko's vanity so they didn't fall with the sudden movement.

"Hmm?"

"Come and help me pick out Onee-sama's dress." Aya beckoned with a raised hand, a Cheshire cat grin spread wide across her face. "She is under the impression that she can get away with picking out the plainest frock she has for this little shindig. We must prove her how very wrong she is!"

Yumi smirked, already seeing where this is going. "Oh, now, we must not have that." She said, walking across the room. Upon entering the closet she quickly took stock of the situation; two rows of clothing, ranging from trousers to blouses, to dress shirts and women's sits, to dresses and ball gowns. The closet wasn't grand or anything, but was large enough to fit the three woman and still have room to try on an assortment of clothing choices. And Touko stood there in the middle of it, her arms around her middle, looking suddenly bashful at the attention.

"Honestly, Aya, I can pick out my own dress." She mumbled, looking back and forward between Yumi and her petite soeur. "You two don't need to gang up on me or anything."

"Nuh-uh, Onee-sama." Aya said, shaking her finger at the older woman. "Yumi-nee-sama and I are going to make you look so good, you'll be beating guys off with a stick." She blinked and peered around. "Now to find one with a good place to hide a stick."

Despite herself, Touko snorted a bitter laugh at that. "I doubt that very much, Aya. It has been my experience that most men are attracted to someone more approachable than me."

"Maybe." Aya said as the rifled through a section of dressed, clicking her tongue as she pulled one out, decided against it, and put it back. "You just gotta smile more, Onee-sama. Then all the guys would flock after you and give me a break." She shot a cheeky grin back towards Yumi and winked.

Yumi rolled her eyes, stepping over to another section of dresses to find one that would suit Touko.

Touko sighed from her spot between Yumi and Aya. "I wish you wouldn't do that, Aya. You know I have no intention of getting married."

"Who said anything about getting married, Onee-sama?" Aya shot back airily. "I'm just trying to get you laid."

Yumi gaped, shocked, at Aya's nerve. Has she actually just  _said_  that? Suddenly afraid of how Touko would react, she backed away from the dresses towards her soeur, reaching out towards her in attempt to calm the impending storm.

But, surprisingly, Touko simply shrugged off the comment.

"Yes, yes, of course you are, Aya." She said, turning her head to peer at Yumi out of the corner of her eyes. "As always, thank you for looking out for me."

"No problem. Ah! How about this one?" Aya pulled out a dark red sleeveless dress from a rack, approaching Touko to hold it up to her torso.

Yumi stepped back towards the side of the closet, breathing a sigh of relief. It seemed as though this was an old joke between the two women; one that Yumi herself hadn't been privy to. One the one hand, she could understand joking around like that. Just the last week, during Sei's surprise visit, hadn't she and Yumi talked about the same thing? So, Yumi shouldn't have been surprised at all that Aya and Touko talked about that kind of thing together.

However…

Something about the idea of Touko having sex with someone… didn't sit well with Yumi.

_Why?_

Touko was a grown woman. She was twenty-six years old, attractive, intelligent and successful—she had a bright future ahead of her. Why shouldn't she have a relationship, even a casual one? Yumi herself had, when she had been going for her Masters at Geidai. Three of them, in fact. They were simply a part of being an adult, Yumi knew. So it was only natural that Touko go out with people.

_So why does that feel weird to think about?_

Shaking her head, Yumi banished the thought. Touko was her petite soeur. Of course she would want to watch out for her. Yumi wanted the best for Touko, and having a casual relationship with someone was something she didn't necessarily want for her. She wanted something with more…

Stability and love.

 _So the pot said to the kettle, Yumi_.

Forcing away the self-debasing sneer that threatened to show itself on her lips, Yumi stepped up beside Aya as the woman held up another dress to Touko, this time white, knee-length dress that showed off Touko's legs.

"You gonna have to shave though, Onee-sama, if you choose this one." Aya pointed out as Touko looked herself over in the floor-length mirror.

"Oh, the horror." Touko quipped, turning herself around. "We wouldn't want all the men at the party to be scared off by my unsightly leg hair, would we?"

Aya shrugged. "Eh. Some might be into it." As Yumi laughed, Touko grunted and held out the dress to Aya, which she returned to its place in search of another.

Looking off to the side, Yumi spotted another dress, a dark green one, almost as though it was hiding in the back corner of the closet to pull it free. It looked good, if a little long in the skirts. But it still seemed attractive enough. Nodding to herself, she returned to Touko and Aya, holding out the piece.

"How about this one?" She offered.

Touko blinked, eying the dress curiously. "When did I get that one?" She wondered aloud as Aya took it from Yumi to hold up against Touko.

"Mmm… I can't remember, Onee-sama." Aya said, tilting her head to the side. "But I agree with Yumi-nee-sama, it looks pretty good. Try it on?"

Nodding, Touko unbuttoned her blouse silently, shedding the article and handing it to Yumi. The older woman snatched a hanger from a nearby rack and hung the blouse up. Next came Touko's trousers, which she also slipped off, muttering a 'thank you' when Yumi stashed them beside the blouse.

"Oooh. Cute bra, Onee-sama." Aya grinned, eyeing Touko's choice in underwear. Her grande soeur, blushed softly, reaching up in attempt to hide the lacy, light blue bra from the two women.

"I'm glad you approve." Touko huffed, stepping into the dress Yumi had picked and pulling it up her bare legs. "Help me with this."

Aya giggled, but assisted in pulling up the dress and zipping it up Touko's back. Once secured, Aya stepped back to stand beside Yumi, ready to give her critique.

"Cute. The overall dark green tone is nice when taking your eyes into account." Aya said, tapping her upper lip with her finger thoughtfully. "You'd want to do your hair up, maybe with a matching green ribbon or hairband. Or just load it with enough spray to knock out a horse. Other than that…" She clicked her tongue. "Oh—damn. That's not good."

"What?" Yumi asked, suddenly concerned. The dress looked pretty amazing to her. She just wished she looked half as good in a dress.  _Any_ dress. It didn't matter much to her.

"Your scar is showing, Onee-sama. We probably should choose a different one if you want to hide it."

Yumi felt her stomach drop. Her mouth went dry as she turned to look at Touko—in particular, her shoulder. There, clear as day, like pale, milky sneer on the otherwise healthy skin of her petite soeur, was the scar that Yumi gave to her. It was little bigger than an inch— very thin. But still, it stood out like a dead tree in a grove of lush, green pine. An ugly, sickening reminder of what a horrible, despicable girl Yumi was.

Still is.

Yumi dared a quick look at Touko' face, just to see her expression, only to find the younger woman's gaze directly on her. Yumi broke off immediately, choosing instead to stare at the ground in shame.

_I… don't deserve to even be here right now._

"That's alright, Aya." Touko said softly. "I will wear the white dress, instead. Will you please take it down to the wash for me along with your own? Get Harumi-san to steam-wash them for us."

"Alright!" Aya said agreeably. She walked over to the previously discarded white, knee-length dress, and gathered it up, along with her chosen dark green dress, and made to leave the closet before stopping. "But, what about Yumi-nee-sama's dress?"

"I can help her choose one while you take care of ours." Touko said.

Aya seemed to hesitate, but thought better of it. "Okay. Let me know if you need me to run your dress down to be cleaned, too, Yumi-nee-sama."

Yumi nodded, not trusting herself to speak. Aya seemed to accept that, and left the closet. A moment later, the door to Touko's bedroom opened, and closed.

Yumi and Touko were alone.

Not sure what she should do in this situation, Yumi stood there staring at the carpet, her heart pounding in her chest and her hands clenched at her sides. She heard Touko move, her dress rustling as she walked towards her. Yumi tensed as she felt Touko approach, only to flinch when she heard her soeur speak:

"Onee-sama, can you please help me take this off?"

Blinking, Yumi looked up to see Touko standing there, her back toward Yumi, giving her access to the zipper that held the dress snug to her body.

"Ah… en." Yumi stuttered, not sure what else she could say. She reached out with a shaky hand to the zipper, and tugged it down, loosening the dress from Touko's shoulders.

"Thank you." Touko said softly, and stepped away to slip the dress from her, leaving her shoulders and back bare save for her bra.

Yumi swallowed, and turned away to choose a dress for herself. There were quite a bit, much more than Yumi herself had, which was only four, and an assortment of skirts. Touko, on the other hand, got dresses fairly regularly, even if she rarely ever wore them. Her parents and family friends never failed to give at least one dress as a gift for a birthday, or for Christmas. Yumi never really knew why, and from what she said, neither did Touko. But they were lovely gifts regardless.

Yumi's halfhearted search for her dress was interrupted when she heard Touko clear her throat from across the closet.

"Onee-sama, please come and look at this one. I think it would suit you." Now dressed in her blouse and beige trousers across the closet, she was holding a goldenrod dress. The dress itself looked like it was slightly shorter than Yumi was used to, but otherwise looked very pretty.

"Tha-" Yumi tried to speak, but her voice failed her. She swallowed, and tried again. "That one?"

Nodding, Touko stepped towards Yumi, keeping her eyes trained on her. "Yes. The color would go well with your hair and skin tone, I should think."

"Alright." Yumi said, walking over to take the dress from her soeur. It was not nearly as heavy as it looked at first glance, Yumi noted, and as she held it up to her body, she felt Touko gently push her towards the floor-length mirror at the end of the closet.

Upon holding it up to her this frame, Yumi could see what Touko meant by the color matching her. The soft tone of the goldenrod yellow meshed with her brown hair and eyes, giving her an overall warm, pleasant look to her. It was sleeveless, and the top wasn't particularly low-cut, but still scooped low enough to show just the tiniest hint of cleavage (Touko had most likely never worn this particular dress for that very reason). The skirt, aside from a cute flaring design to it, was slanted to one side, starting just above her knee and dipping down to her other leg's ankle.

It was a nice, elegant effect that Yumi wasn't really used to seeing herself being able to pull off.

"The angled design of the skirt makes it easier to dance." Touko supplied, brushing off some dust from the shoulder of the dress. "You did mention wanting to dance, after all, Onee-sama."

Yumi nodded. "Yea, I did. It looks lovely. Thank you, Touko."

Touko's lips curled up into a small smile, and she stepped back from Yumi, turning away again. "You'll need some shoes to match, I think. Can you still manage three-inch heels?"

Yumi, in spite of her earlier discomfort, groaned. "I don't know… maybe? I'd would have to try them out a bit first."

The shoes were easy enough to find; apparently, they came with the dress. Yumi eyed the offending heels for a moment, debating whether or not this whole thing was worth it, but at Aya's insistence (the woman had just returned from dropping off their dresses to be cleaned), she donned them with a reluctant sigh.

As she walked around the bedroom to get a feel for the heels, which, oddly enough, wasn't as difficult as she remembered them being, Aya let out an appreciative whistle.

"Damn, Yumi-nee-sama. We might have competition tonight." She giggled. "Then again, knowing your preferences, we can split all the boys and girls in the room even." She nudged Touko in the side. "What do you think Onee-sama?"

Yumi turned to look at Touko, who had a studious look creeping across her face. After a moment, she nodded and clapped her hands together once. "Alright. We have—" She eyed the wall clock across her room for a moment. "Two-and-a-half hours until the party. That gives up two hours to finish getting ready and thirty minutes to drive there. Aya," She turned to her petite soeur, who stood erect at the attention. "Find your shoes and take a shower after Onee-sama."

"Yes, Ma'am!" Aya said, snapping off a sharp salute and darting off to scour the closet for her shoes.

"Onee-sama," Touko continued. "If you would like to take a shower now before Aya, please feel free. I can help you with your hair and make-up after."

Nodding, Yumi knelt down to take off her heels. "Alright, but what about you?"

"I can wait until you and Aya are finished before taking my shower." She said dismissively. "It shouldn't take me all that long to get ready. I would much rather help you and Aya."

Yumi frowned, stepping forward to approach her soeur. "Touko…"

"Hmm?" The woman blinked in question.

Hesitating, Yumi halted a couple paces away from Touko, wondering what it was she wanted to say to her. She floundered, wanted to both thank Touko for being there for her, for doing anything and everything, ranging from picking out a dress and shoes, to staying the night with her when she felt lonely. For… just  _being Touko_.

She knew her soeur did what she only thought was best for other people. Never for herself. She would help Aya and Yumi pick out the best dresses, leaving the plainest one for herself at the same time. She would spend the night with Yumi, even if it means risk being late for her classes, or missing them entirely like she had the previous day. She would take time out of her day, no matter how important or busy it was, all for the most trivial and unimportant issues that Yumi found herself with.

It… was humbling. And Yumi didn't know how to express what she felt into words.

"Onee-sama." Touko finally said, tilting her head to the side and reaching up with her hand to brush a stray hair out of Yumi's eyes.

"Yes?" Yumi responded, looking up to meet Touko's gaze.

Touko looked at Yumi for a long moment, her dark eyes flicking back and forth between Yumi's brown ones, before smiling and nodding towards the other end of the room. "You'd better get going, or Aya may beat you to the bathroom."

And there it was again; Touko being Touko. Always looking out for Yumi. Always putting her ahead of everything else.

It was consistent, if nothing else.

"Alright." Yumi said softly, backing off from Touko and walking to the attached bathroom. "I'll try and be quick."

"Do not worry, Onee-sama. Aya will take at least fifteen minutes to find the shoes she wants."

As Yumi opened the door and stepped inside, she barely caught the humored smirk that stretched across Touko's features before laughing.

"Yea, that does sound a bit like her."

0 – 0 – 0

**_From the diary of Yumi Fukuzawa_ **

_This will be my last diary entry._

_Ever since starting my therapy with Doctor Kimigura, I have had a lot of time to think. A lot of time to reflect. On me, my life, my friends and family, and what I want from the future._

_It's been two years since that day Touko found me in my dorm room, knife in hand. Two years since I left Suguru. Five years since Onee-sama left me. And it has taken me this long to get my life back in order enough for me to say 'I am content with myself'._

_I am rapidly approaching the end of my university life. I will graduate next year with a Master's Degree in Architectural Engineering, and will go to work with my father. Yuuki's sudden interest in this field, whether the business side or the actual architectural side, is surprising, but nice nonetheless. It will be good to have his help._

_My family is still being as supporting as the can be. Or at least as supporting as I allow them to be. I can tell they want to do more for me, but Doctor Kimigura agreed with me that I should be firm with them with how much I let them go out of their way to help me. I am getting older, and therefore more independent, and their involvement in my life should reflect that. To have anything otherwise would just be a crutch._

_Yoshino and Shimako are trying their best to as normal as they always have been around me, and I couldn't ask any more of them. We see each other fairly often. Or, as often as we can seeing as we are attending different schools and have pretty different schedules. Shimako is going for law degree— can you believe that!— And Yoshino just finished up her teaching credentials. She expressed an interest in returning to Lillian to teach. That should be fun._

_Rei has been teaching me to cook. I never really expressed much interest in learning before, but after Doctor Kimigura suggested I pick up a new hobby, and Rei offered to teach me, I couldn't find it in me to refuse. In hindsight, I'm glad I didn't. Rei says I am very good at it, and while I find the art pretty challenging at times, it's also very fun._

_I haven't spoken to Suguru in two years. And that is fine. After thinking on things, and how they went between us, I have decided that perhaps both of us were in the wrong. Maybe I expected too much from him, grabbing onto his kindness with both hands after Onee-sama. And maybe he expected me to stay the course and still pine after Onee-sama forever. Whatever the issue was, it is over between us. I am not sure we can ever be friends again, but at least I can admit that with a clear head._

_Touko…_

_What more can I say about Touko. I can only hope she can find the kindness to forgive me for my… my… my what? My mistakes… my dependency on her… everything. I love her more than anything and I am terrified of losing her… but I am more terrified of facing all the horrible things I've done to her; taking so much of her time, her energy, her effort… her innocence. I have stolen so much from her and what does she take from me? Nothing. She only gives and gives._

_Truly, she is an angel sent from Maria-sama._

_Overall, I think I am okay. I am getting happier with myself, and how I am thinking of the future._

_I've had a girlfriend for a couple months now. You wouldn't believe how difficult it was to find what small LGBT community there was around Geidai! But, out of the handful of us (a large amount were, perhaps unsurprisingly, transfer students), there were a few girls I was attracted to. Kiki was one that actually approached me first._

_Actually, Kiki was my second girlfriend. The first, a girl named Fumiko, didn't really work out so well. We didn't last very long. We tried sleeping together the once… and well, it didn't really go well for either of us. Apparently, from what Fumiko told me after she had calmed down enough to talk to me, I was a very violent person sexually. I was embarrassed, and ashamed of myself. Had I really changed so much since Onee-sama left?_

_Somehow, I wondered if my little episode with Touko attributed to that._

_I obviously wasn't really for intimacy yet._

_But my relationship with Kiki is progressing much better. I am trying to not jump straight into bed with her, and see how that goes._

_Let's see… my family and friends are good. My relationship with Touko is… unchanged. And I am trying to have a normal relationship with someone. All the while, getting my degree. I think that can be called 'normal', right?_

_Though it seems I had taken the long way around, I am coming around to being happy with myself. Of course, there were things I would change if I could. Who wouldn't? But then I wouldn't be the person I am today without my past. I am not sure I would prefer that. Sure, I would have gone without the pain, and the heartbreak, and the angst that came with everything that happened to me. And I don't think I will ever be truly free from Onee-sama… or Suguru... or Touko. And that's just fine._

_They define me. They make me who I am; Yumi Fukuzawa._

_And I am okay with that._

_So, thank you Onee-sama. Thank you Surugu. Thank you for making me who I am. Still, though… fuck you both._

_Touko…_

_I love you._

_More than words can express._

_Yumi Fukuzawa._

0 – 0 – 0

_End of chapter 12_


	13. Chapter 13

**The Princess and the Sparrow**

_Chapter 13_

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 1**

The drive to the banquet hall where the birthday party was being held at was fairly uneventful, as drives went. Aya chatted with Yumi along the way, making occasional comments towards Touko, who was driving the trio, but aside from the occasional grunt or affirmative nod, clearly didn't expect much in the way of meaningful conversation from the driver.

Yumi learned that Aya, in the weeks following their group get-together over New Years, had started on a new program for her computer company, had met a guy (but hadn't been asked out to a second date, much to her dismay), and played more video games than Yumi felt was necessarily healthy for a person to play.

"I'm sorry to hear about… um… Junpei-san, Aya-chan." Yumi said, sympathizing with the younger woman. She knew from experience that breaking up with someone – or even not getting called back – wasn't a really great feeling.

Aya shrugged. "Eh… its fine. He was cute, yea, but just one date isn't enough to really get attached to someone. It rarely is."

At her words, Yumi was reminded of her first impression of Maya, and shook her head in consternation.  _Why_  was she so bent on thinking of Maya Sagara at such odd times?

"So, anyway, that means that Aya Kotomine-tan is back on the market! Woo! Rejoice!" Aya did a small cheer and wiggled in her seat.

"All the men of Tokyo better watch out." Yumi declared, smiling at her Grand Petite Soeur's enthusiasm.

"Or the women!" Aya shot back, leaning forward again. "Maybe I'll join the other team so I can finally have you, Yumi-nee-sama." She blew into Yumi's ear, giggling when the older woman sat up straight and shot a mock glare back in her direction. "Oooh— Feisty!" She cackled. "I like that!"

"Honestly, Aya," Touko muttered from her place behind the wheel. They had just arrived at a busy intersection and it looked as though they would be stuck there for at least a few minutes. "I just can't imagine you turning to women."

"Oh no?" The other remarked, leaning back in her seat, smirking lightly. "Don't think I could make the switch from hot dogs to tacos?"

It took Yumi a moment to figure out Aya's euphemism; and when she did, she blushed hotly.

Touko didn't miss a beat. "No, Aya. I do not. For all your bluster and bravado, I do not think you would you would be able to." She sent a glance toward the backseat in her rear-view mirror. "I believe you would miss men too much."

Yumi did not miss the implication that Touko put out. Apparently, neither did Aya, who nodded sagely. "I would miss the penis, yes."

The statement was so blunt and matter-of-fact, that Yumi couldn't stop the snorting laugh that bubbled up from her throat. She chuckled and held her face in her hands; half to hide her blush at the sudden topic, and half to stem the laughter that was erupting from her. It didn't help much, on either account.

Seeing the crack in Yumi's mood she had been apparently been sensing all afternoon, Aya pressed her attack. "Though, I wouldn't worry too much. If I  _were_  to join the other side, there are ways around that. The lack of male genitals, I mean." Her grin was all too obvious, even from her tone.

Touko sighed from her seat. "Oh, please Aya… must we?"

Laughing, Aya nodded. "Oh yes, we must. Does Yumi-nee-sama know of such things?"

Finally getting her breath back, Yumi rubbed her hand over her face, trying but failing to keep the smile from her face. "What, the penis?" She asked, and laughed again at Aya's encouraging nod. "I know of it, yes. Never been a fan."

Aya burst out laughing at that. Even Touko cracked a small smile from the driver's seat.

"But what about…" Aya leaned forward again, her smirk making a triumphant return. "You know…  _sex_?"

"What about it?" Yumi asked, her tone turning sardonic. "Are you asking how I have sex if there is no penis involved?"

"Oh no no no!" Aya declared, waving her hands in front of her. "I totally know about that. I just wanted your opinion, as a member of the homosexual persuasion to one of the heterosexual, on how you feel about the 'nothing-to-grab-onto-down-there' and what you do instead."

"Oh my God… can we please not talk about this in the car?" Touko muttered, her forehead on the steering wheel.

Smiling at Touko's discomfort, and reveling in the few instances she could get the upper hand on her Petite Soeur, Yumi continued her verbal match with Aya. "Well, as far as nothing to grab onto down there in concerned… there is plenty to 'grab onto'… just not in the way you're thinking."

"Oh- _hoh!"_  Aya intoned, smiling wickedly. "Tell us more, Yumi-sensei! Your students thirst for knowledge!"

"No we don't." Touko muttered.

"Yes we do!" Aya leaned forward, grasping both Yumi and Touko's seats with her hands. "Enlighten us, Yumi-sensei! Tell us how to make sweet, lesbian love!"

Yumi laughed again as the car began moving. The light had just turned green again and Touko, it seemed, was intent on ignoring both her Petite and Grand Soeur's conversation. "Sweet lesbian love?"

Nodding, Aya's grin, if at all possible, widened to shit-eating proportions. "Absolutely. It's not like man sex— rough and wild. Girl sex is more sweet, loving and gentle; all kissing, touching and licking and petting."

Yumi's eyebrow cocked. As far as her own sexual experiences had played out in the past, very few had been sweet, loving or gentle. All, aside from her first time with her own Onee-sama, had been… well… not very pleasant. "And how would you know that, Aya-chan?" She asked, deflecting the topic back to the younger woman.

Aya blinked owlishly from behind her glasses. "Shoujo manga, of course. Everything important to be learned about sex and relationships can be learned through shoujo manga."

Again, the absurdity of it all hit Yumi right where it hurt, and she laughed. Aya joined in right away. Even Touko started chuckling, mildly surprising Yumi. Eventually the laughter died down, only to be replaced with the quiet hum of the engine as Touko drove along the street.

"You certainly are looking in through rose-colored glasses, Aya-chan."

It took a moment for the irony of the phrase to register to the trio, and that only caused the laughter to begin anew.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 2**

The banquet hall itself was one of the larger ones in Tokyo. Yumi hadn't really payed attention to where it was located (she had been much too busy talking with Aya to pay attention— that's what Touko was for, after all), but she vaguely recognized it as someplace she had most likely been to once before after they had arrived at the entrance. Yumi stepped out of the car, smiling kindly to a valet whom had opened the door for her, and at once found Aya at her side.

"Nice digs, huh?" The younger woman remarked, gesturing with her chin to the building itself.

Yumi glanced at Aya, once again taking in the other's choice in garments for the evening. Her chosen dress, a dark green off-the-shoulder gown, was nicely cut to her petite figure. It clung to her torso, painting a flattering picture regardless of the fact if one took into account her less-than-developed bust – it was one of the things she had in common with Touko, it seemed—, and continued down to a smooth, silky skirt that hugged her hips down to her shins. It was a lovely dress, and one that Yumi had to admit she would have chosen for her, had Yumi seen it first.

Touko had chosen it for Aya, apparently. Good taste, that girl had. Now if only Aya had worn contacts instead of her slightly too-large glasses…

Shaking her head, Yumi stepped away from Aya onto the curb, turning back around to wait for Touko, who was exchanging words with the valet.

"It is a nice place. I think I remember it being much nicer on the inside than the outside, though."

Aya pursed her lips and whistled softly. "That good, huh? Nice."

"Mmm." Yumi agreed, giving the younger girl a smile when turned and waiting for Touko. She didn't have to wait long, as she then handed the keys to her car and approached Aya, who fell into step just behind Touko and joined Yumi up on the curb.

"Onee-sama," Touko said as she reached her. "Are you ready?"

Shrugging slightly, Yumi gave the younger girl a rueful grin. "Bit too late to go back and hide in my room, isn't it? I mean, I even shaved my legs and everything."

The color of Touko's cheeks turned a bright pink at the jab, and behind her Aya sniggered. "Then it seems to be a waste of effort if you were to go home, wouldn't it?" Touko said stiffly, but Yumi could sense the tinniest flicker of mirth behind the younger woman's eyes as she stalked past her Soeur. Aya followed, raising her hand for a high-five, which Yumi allowed as she passed.

The trio, with Touko in the lead, entered the hall through the main entrance. It took them a few moments of searching before they found a placard detailing what direction they were supposed to go. Banquet Hall A, apparently.

"That is the largest one." Touko pointed out as they walked down the hallway towards their destination. There were a few older people – couples and a few singles — walking in the same direction, most likely attendees of the birthday party as they were. Yumi watched them as they walked, but gave up after moments when she found that she couldn't recognize anyone. Suddenly feeling a little out of her depth, Yumi caught Touko's elbow as they walked, prompting the younger woman to slow, but not stop, her steps.

"Whose birthday party is this?" Yumi asked quietly, just loud enough for her companions to hear.

Touko peered back at Yumi, slowing just enough to hang back from the other people walking down the hallway so they would not be overheard. "He is a colleague of my father's. Well," She hesitated. "Of a sort. He is an investor that has a great deal of faith with my father and his work, and has been for many years. You could say he is something of a family friend."

Yumi nodded, digesting this. "Have I ever met him?"

"I do not believe so, Onee-sama." Touko replied with a small shake of her head. "He isn't around all that often; only occasionally taking our family out to dinner and sending us holiday greetings. Though, when I was younger, I do remember him visiting more often. He is getting older and has other things to attend to." She turned her head again to look at Yumi out of the corner of her eye. "He does, however, know about you. So be prepared to be greet him properly."

Yumi's cheeks colored as she stammered, "I-I… uh… r-really?" Behind them, Aya giggled.

"Mmm." Touko affirmed as they turned a corner. Further down the hallway was a larger group of people milling around a table. There must have been a sign-in sheet for the guests and attendees. "Don't worry. He knows you are my Onee-sama and is familiar with how the relationship works, as my family does. He will simply like to meet you and maybe, if time permitting, ask you some questions about yourself. He is really very kind." She added at Yumi's beleaguered look.

"Uh huh." Yumi muttered.

Behind them, Aya's giggles continued.

A few moments later, the trio arrived at the check in station and queued behind an older couple. They silently waited for their turn, and then the couple finished checking in and continued through the opened double-doorway into the banquet hall, Yumi stepped forward beside Touko.

"May I have your names, please?" An attractive girl – probably in her late twenties Yumi reckoned – asked, fingering a clipboard. She wore a crisp, charcoal grey blazer with a matching pencil skirt. Yumi couldn't see her shoes, but from the girl's posture she assumed the receptionist was wearing heels. She opened her mouth to speak, but Touko was quicker.

"Touko Matsudaira with guests Yumi Fukuzawa and Aya Kotomine." She said, gesturing with her head towards Yumi and Aya.

"Thank you." The girl said politely, making a note in what Yumi rightly assumed was the guest registry. When she finished writing their names down, she smiled. "Please enter through the main doors and be sure to find your seats before dinner starts."

"Thank you very much." Touko said, repeated by Yumi and Aya as they passed the station towards to door. Yumi nodded to a couple that passed by them on their way out, and paused for a moment as they entered, gaping at the sight of the room.

In a word, it was big.

The hall itself could have fit hundreds of people. It was clearly designed for larger gatherings of people; wedding, parties and the like, and was certainly equipped to handle such situations. A large stage was at the front of the room, stretching out far enough to hold a whole orchestra if one was requested. A polished wooden dance floor took up a large bulk of the middle of the room, easily large enough to fit dozens of couples in an expansive waltz. Littered around the room were numerous large, circular tables, with enough chairs and plates laid out to accommodate at least ten – at least, as a glance – people at each one. The ceiling, high and arched, Yumi took a moment to admire. She had always had a thing for arched ceilings and this one, without a doubt, was pretty. She would have to sketch out an interpretation when she had a moment.

All in all, the room was pretty ostentatious.

Another word would have been 'expensive'.

"Shall we find our table, then?" Touko said from beside Yumi, turning towards her companions. "It should be somewhere towards the front."

"'Kay!" Aya chirped, darting forward to lead the way as they searched the circular tables for their names. Every plate, set for every guest and attendee, had a name card set aside, indicating where the guests were required to sit. It was to make things easier at events like this, or else it would be difficult to account for everyone.

Eventually, they arrived at one of the four tables at the front of the hall. The table was populated by a few people who were in conversation with one another, but seemed to be, at first glance, in their forties. They seemed to not take notice of the trio as they approached, as they were conversing amicably between themselves.

"Found us!" Aya called from Touko's other side, gesturing to a set of three chairs on the far side of the table. Yumi walked towards the younger woman and looked down to find her name written out – correctly, too – on a notecard on a plate. It was indeed her seat.

"Thank you very much, Aya." Touko said, carefully plucking her own nametag and stuffing it in her clutch. Yumi did likewise, smiling as Aya grinned cheerfully and plopped herself down in her seat. Yumi was about to follow her lead when one of the tables occupants spoke to them.

"Is that… Touko-chan?"

Yumi looked up to see a man she found vaguely familiar, who must have been in his late forties, standing up to approach Touko, a wide grin on his clean-shaven face. Touko abandoned her chair to meet the man, her smile matching his. Yumi heard Aya grunt as she made to stand again, and followed along, moving to greet the man who apparently knew her petite soeur.

"Touko-chan!" The man said, his arms spread out to embrace the young woman. To Yumi's slight surprise Touko accepted the gesture, leaning into the hug.

"Hello. It's lovely to see you." She said happily. "You look very well."

"Thank you, thank you!" The man released Touko after a moment, stepping back to cast his gaze over at Touko's companions. "Aya-chan, eh?" He chuckled good-naturedly. "Guess I shouldn't be too surprised that you're here."

The woman giggled, waving her hand demurely. "Oh, you know me. I love these things."

"You sure do, young lady. You sure do." He muttered, shaking his head with mirth. His eyes landed on Yumi, blinked twice, and then widened in surprise. "And… is that… Yumi-chan? Yumi Fukuzawa?"

Yumi blinked, caught off guard by the man's familiarity. "Ah…" She managed to get out before noticing that the other occupants at the table stopped their conversations to look at her. She faltered in the sudden silence at the table and, as she took a quick look around her direct vicinity, it seemed as though other people at  _other_  tables close by had stopped what they were doing to look in her direction.

Everyone within earshot was looking at  _her._

This… had just gotten a little weird.

The man, who apparently knew Yumi enough to add a  _–chan_  honorific to her name, walked around the table with Touko at his side, his smile even wider than when he had greeted Touko.

"H-hello." Yumi said nervously. She felt better when Touko stepped up beside her, but not quite enough to rid herself completely as the man reached out to embrace her as he did Touko. Yumi sent an urgent look of confusion towards her Soeur, but accepted the hug regardless.

"Uncle Tetsu, please. You know how Onee-sama is with hugs."

 _Oh!_  Suddenly the face had a name, and Yumi remembered. This man was Touko's mother's younger brother, Tetsu Gotou. She had met him only a couple times – two to be exact – and as such hadn't really been able to remember him right off the bat. But as he released her, smiling apologetically at Yumi, she remembered his kind, youthful face and dark eyes.

"Ah – yes." Tetsu said, shrugging slightly. "You'll have to forgive me, Yumi-chan. It's been a quite a while since I have seen you and I admit I was overexcited."

Yumi shook her head and stepped back to Touko's side. Already feeling better now that she recognized the man who had hugged her quite suddenly. People around her were still looking at her not-so-subtly, but she tried her best to ignore them. "It's quite alight. I hardly recognized you, Gotou-sama. Have you lost weight?"

Tetsu barked a laugh, rolling his eyes in an over-exaggerated gesture. "No, no, Yumi-chan. No lost weight, sadly. I am just hiding it on the side." He cracked a grin, which Yumi shared and Aya giggled at behind her. After a moment, he turned towards Touko, addressing her. "Is your mother here yet?"

Touko tilted her head. "My mother and father left after us, so I shouldn't think so. They should be here soon, though."

Tetsu nodded in understanding and gave a great sigh. "Well, then, I shall leave you ladies to it. Enjoy the party."

Yumi, Touko and Aya all nodded in unison and Testu returned to his seat, where another man – one Yumi had not recognized – was waiting. When the trio took their seats again Yumi leaned close to Touko.

"Why is everyone staring at me?" She whispered softly, still looking around to find surreptitious glances being shot her way.

Touko followed Yumi's eyes around the room, her face tightening almost unnoticeably if it wasn't for Yumi's closeness, and then turned her attention back towards the older woman. "Because everyone here is more or less familiar with my family, and the work my father does. Not only that, but almost everyone here has some dealings with each other, as well as more larger names in the business world…" She trailed off, sending a significant look towards her Soeur.

Yumi stiffened, her jaw clenching tightly as she leaned back in her seat. So, if she were reading Touko right – and she usually did – then it obvious that most, if not all, of the guests that attended this party were familiar with not only Yumi's relation to the Matsudairas… but also the Ogasawaras.

Or rather, her relation to Sachiko.

That was just peachy.

"Well, that explains it." Yumi finally muttered, shaking her head. She flicked her eyes up to a pair of older women who were eyeing her curiously, but quickly looked away in the wake of Yumi's heated stare. "I should have realized."

"I should have told you." Touko amended quietly, the corners of her eyes softening. "I apologize, Onee-sama."

"It's not your fault." Yumi said automatically, and then breathed in deeply, releasing the breath once she held it for a few moments. The annoyance that she was being watched simply due to her relation to the Ogasawaras was still there… but Yumi was at least aware of it, and prepared to outright ignore the fact for the rest of the night. "Anyway, I am not here to mope. I am here to dance. So, do we eat first, or after?"

At that, Aya chose to join the conversation. "Before, I hope. I'd give my left leg kill for a cut of sirloin. Or, how they say in China,  _'Wo e si le. Tamen ying gai kuai yi dian gei wo chi fan, hou zhe wo hui da si ren le.'_ "

Touko raised an eyebrow at her Petite Soeur's diatribe. "You are not permitted to strike, maim, or injure anyone for food, Aya."

The younger woman blinked rapidly. "O-Onee-sama… you speak Chinese?"

Touko shrugged. "No. I just know you. It sounds like something you would do."

As Yumi snorted a laugh, Aya nodded. "Well… that is true."

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 3**

"You know something?" Yumi said suddenly. "This wasn't nearly as difficult as I thought it would be."

Touko arched an eyebrow high into her bangs, tilting her head slightly to the side as she held her arm around Yumi's waist. "What isn't, Onee-sama?" She asked curiously.

Yumi grinned as she tried to keep count of their steps in her head. For a four-count waltz, it was simple enough. And with Touko leading her, being the masterful dancer she was –naturally— it was almost ridiculously easy to just give all control to the younger woman as they took their first dance together.

"Dancing again." Yumi finally said, smiling widely at Touko.

"That is because I am leading, remember, Onee-sama?" She said simply. "All you have to do is match my movements, and everything else falls into place." She sent a significant look towards her Soeur. "And so far you have missed at least seven steps. Hardly cause for celebration."

Yumi scowled, but kept her grin in place. "Oh, you're no fun, Touko. Cut me some slack, huh? I am out of practice."

"And yet here you were, not thirty seconds ago, remarking about how easy this was." Touko continued to say, her voice as dry as a desert over the orchestral music playing over the ballroom's speakers.

Yumi's grin only widened. "That's just because you are an amazing partner, Touko."

Predictably, Touko's cheeks darkened at the praise, and her eyes darted away from Yumi in embarrassment. Yumi giggled at the younger woman's reaction, inwardly marveling at her ability to keep up their pace and avoid Yumi's gaze at the same time. Touko Matsudaira was truly a gifted individual.

"Yes… well," Touko cleared her throat, pausing slightly as she changed their direction as the music prompted. Yumi stumbled momentarily, but was pulled along expertly by her Soeur, who commanded their steps with a firm arm on her waist. Once their steps were back in tune, Touko continued, "Be that as it may, I am still surprised you even wanted to attend the party at all. As I said before, you normally pass on these types of events."

Yumi shrugged even as she felt Touko's subtle nudge to change directions. She did so, avoiding another couple in time to prevent a disaster on the dance floor. "I wanted to dance."

Touko nodded. "Yes, I remember. But why now?"

Sighing inwardly, Yumi glanced away from her Soeur, watching the other couples twirl and dance around them. She wanted to tell her the real reason she came out of hiding for this party… but also didn't want to make it seem as though she were using Touko for the opportunity. She had considered how it sounded earlier in the day, and inwardly winced as she replaced the sort of conversation that would play out between the two women in her head… it hadn't sounded good.

But, Touko being Touko… she would find out the truth eventually. And as always, with Touko, the truth was always the best way to go.

"Truthfully, I wanted to remember how to dance because I wanted to teach someone else." Yumi finally said. She flicked her eyes back up to her partner to gauge her reaction.

"Someone else?" Touko questioned. She blinked a couple times in thought, but it apparently took her a few beats to come to the conclusion on her own. "Ah. Sagara-san." She said, letting out a quiet breath as she turned Yumi around, stepping past her legs swiftly with a flourish. The two turned about and continued their waltz in the opposite direction, narrowly avoiding a second couple. Touko ignored them. "I think I understand. You wanted to teach her how to dance, and so you came tonight to brush up on your skills."

When she said it like that, it sounded pretty cold – like Yumi was only at the party for the reason of dancing so she could teach Maya. Yumi had already came to that conclusion, and grimaced, biting her lip softly. "Are you mad?"

If anything, the surprise that flashed over Touko's face was unexpected. "Mad? Why would I be mad?" She asked, her tone honestly curious.

Yumi stumbled again, but was pulled into Touko's step without missing a beat. Damnit, even deep in a conversation, Touko was still paying attention to her surroundings. The girl was amazing. Of that, there was no doubt in Yumi's mind. "Because I came tonight to practice dancing." She said, watching Touko for a reaction.

"Why would I be made about that?"

Frowning slightly, Yumi tried again. "Because I wanted to practice dancing to help teach Maya-san." At Touko's blank look, Yumi huffed slightly. "Because at first, I didn't want to come to the party to spend time with you and Aya-chan."

At that, Touko blinked, spinning Yumi around and re-directing her hand at the older woman's waist skillfully. "Onee-sama, you have gone years without attending a party with neither me nor Aya. We know why, and accept that. The fact that you are choosing to attend this time did come as a shock, but it didn't take much to realize that it wasn't because of us."

If anything, that made Yumi feel worse. She lowered her head, but Touko's deft hand on her arm and waist kept her on track with the music.

"Do not worry; we are not upset." Touko added, making Yumi glance back up at her. Surprisingly, the younger woman's face was stretched into a small smile. "I haven't seen Aya this happy about something in a long time. She enjoys these kinds of things, surely… but the fact that you came as well gave her all the more reason to get excited all over again." She shrugged slightly, keeping her grip on Yumi as the music started to slow. The end of the song was drawing close and the other couples in the room matched their pace.

"I admit I was a little put out at first, when the thought of you wanting to join us simply because of another person…" Touko murmured so softly, Yumi had to nudge herself a little closer to hear her clearly. "But then I realized that if Sagara-san is such a good friend as to make you actually  _want_  to pull you out of your cave when myself or Aya could not…" She shrugged again, giving Yumi one last spin and pulling her back into her grip. "Then I could still count that as a good thing.

"I meant what I said, Onee-sama. I will not bring up Sagara-san again if you don't, and I will not dictate to you on your own dealings with your friends." Her cheeks pinked softly, and Yumi was paying close enough attention to pick up on it. "I am happy that you could spend more time with Aya and I… no matter the reason why."

Smiling softly as their dance slowed to a stop, Yumi pulled Touko into a loose embrace, which the younger woman wordlessly accepted. When they parted, Yumi stepped back and regarded her blushing Soeur.

"You are the best sister I could ever ask for, Touko. You know that?"

Touko blinked once, twice, and then nodded slowly. "I am happy to hear that, Onee-sama. It is nice to know I won't be replaced anytime soon."

Rolling her eyes at the dry tone Touko suddenly took, she chuckled. "Of course. After all, who could replace you?"

From the deadpan look in the younger woman's eyes, it seemed her answer was a resounding, 'no one' and just as Yumi was about to thank Touko for the dance and move to seek out Aya for her turn, she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around and, for the briefest moment, her heart leapt into her throat.

"Ah – Nii-san." Touko breathed, stepping forward to stand beside Yumi. "I didn't realize you would be here."

As Yumi swallowed, trying to come up with something to say, Suguru seemed to roll his broad shoulders in his suit jacket, shrugging lightly. "It was a last minute invitation. I didn't intend to come tonight, but my parents insisted. Something about paying respects to everyone by attending…" From his tone, it was relatively easy to figure out that the man had other things he would rather be doing. Regardless, here he was, and only days after Yumi and all but screamed at him in a fit of anger.

Yumi flushed slightly at the memory, embarrassment creeping in on her. In retrospect… she  _had_ acted more than a little dramatic… but really, the man had it coming.

Sort of.

As a new song flickered to live over the speakers, Suguru turned his dark blue eyes on Yumi. "Would you mind if I stole you for a dance, Yumi-chan?"

Her mouth working soundlessly, Yumi turned her head towards her Soeur, who simply watched her, her expression neutral. After a moment, Touko nodded encouragingly.

"Go on, Onee-sama. I will find another partner for the next dance. I think I saw an acquaintance of mine around here somewhere. It might do to find him to get Aya off my back, if only for a night." The small grin she shot towards Yumi was anything but serene.

"You're horrible." Yumi said, her own smile widening to match her Soeur's.

"Only when it serves me." And with that, she dipped her head towards the pair. "Have a nice dance, Onee-sama. Nii-san."

And then she was gone, disappearing into the crowd as the song picked up.

Sighing softly, Yumi turned her attention back to the man currently standing within arm's reach, patiently waiting for her to accept his proposal for a dance. She should be mad at him… she  _had been_ mad at him… before. Now, as she watched him warily, his arms held out as if waiting for her to prepare for their dance, she just couldn't muster up the same anger she had felt before.

Maybe it was because it had been a couple weeks since then, and Yumi had time to cool off. Maybe it was because she had spent time with Touko and Aya… Maya… and just had  _fun_  since then. How long had it been since Yumi had fun, aside from recently?

Or maybe, just maybe, it was because she had , her anger fresh in her mind, gone and destroyed every single photo she had of the man together with her, effectively ridding her life of the memories of their time together dating?

Regardless of the reasons, Yumi just couldn't find it in her to harbor the same anger she had felt for the man as only a week or two ago, and simply saw him as Suguru Kashiwagi – Touko's cousin and her one-time best friend. For that, she could definitely spare a dance or two.

A few moments later, when eventually the pair of them would look foolish not dancing in the middle of the other couples, Yumi stepped into Suguru's arms.

"Alright. Go ahead." She said, and they were off.

If anything, Suguru Kashiwagi was a better dancer than Touko. That wasn't too surprising, as Yumi had the funny feelings the man had taught Touko himself. Yumi remembered, however distantly, a teenage Touko skillfully weaving around her partners during the second year dance classes at Lillian, and wondered just how early the girl had started learning. Probably as early as Sachiko, if one were to hazard a guess.

"I wanted to apologize, Yumi-chan." Suguru suddenly said, maneuvering the pair of them between couples in time with the music. This time, it was a faster quickstep, and Yumi was hard-pressed to keep up. Luckily, her partner seemed more than up to the task of dragging her along with him and at the same time making it seem to everyone that Yumi knew exactly what she was doing.

Damn show offs.

"For what?" Yumi asked, already knowing where this was headed, and what was likely the whole reason Suguru had approached her.

"For my behavior when we last spoke." The man explained calmly. "I realize that my words must have affected you, and I wanted to apologize for them. Sometimes, it is better now to say anything about a subject… and I chose to ignore that for my own curiosity."

Shaking her head, Yumi sighed, "No… no. You have nothing to apologize for, Suguru-san." She said, taking note of the older man's placid expression. "I was upset, and acted out. You asked me out for lunch to talk to me about my contract, and I brought up something unpleasant knowing how I would take it." She averted her eyes, shame building up in her chest. "I acted childishly, and I want to apologize for that."

Suguru led Yumi on a few more rotations around the dance floor before finally speaking again. "Then it seems we both felt as if we needed to apologize. We have, and have since moved on." His lips quirked up into a small smile. "Unless I still am not forgiven?"

Smiling herself, Yumi shook her head. "No – it's fine. One apology is enough." She peered at the man out of the corner of her eye as they crossed to the other side of the room in a rapid six count. "Though, if you make our dance any more complicated and I fall flat on my ass, I may have to punch you in the mouth."

Chuckling softly, Surugu held Yumi tighter in his grip as they danced. Though, he did slow their steps somewhat. "Then I shall make sure you do not look like a fool. Especially after that impressive display with Touko-chan."

Rolling her eyes, Yumi grinned. "Touko can make anything look good. Even a train wreck like me."

"One of her many talents, I'd imagine."

Ignoring the fact that Suguru had not argued against Yumi being a train wreck, Yumi silently enjoyed their dance, trying to keep the Quickstep's rapid count in her head while relying on her partner to lead her effectively. Once she noticed the song finally slowing, she let out a sigh of relief.

"You know, I still have your jacket."

Yumi blinked at the sudden comment, thinking back to what Suguru could possibly be talking about. Then, in a flash of embarrassment, it hit her. Their fight, her storming out of his car, leaving her jacket and only remembering later.

She laughed aloud. "Well, no wonder I was so cold since then. That was one of my favorite jackets."

Suguru smiled indulgently. "If you would like, I could give it to you after the party." He eyed her dress casually, causing Yumi to raise an eyebrow at him in exasperation. "Though, it would clash with your look if you wear it."

"A suit jacket with a dress? No thanks. One would think a man gave it to me. I can't have that, can I? I have to keep up appearances, after all."

Laughing at her joking tone, Suguru nodded. "Quite so. In that case, let me know when you are free. I will be more than happy to come by and drop it off."

The song ended, and Suguru released Yumi's hand and waist. He took a moment to bow towards Yumi, who smiled slightly at the action, old-fashioned though it was.

"Just give me a call," Yumi said. "And we'll have lunch or something. You can give it back to me then."

Only after she said so, and noticing the surprised look that flashed across Suguru's face, did Yumi realize what she just did. She was, in effect, trying to openly rebuild the dyke that had broken when she had broken it off with Suguru all that time ago. In the years since, she had never once suggested that she and the man do anything together, and only barely keeping up the appearance of civility – at least, on Yumi's end – in front of Touko, as to not upset her. Suguru had tried on occasion to keep in touch with Yumi; whether it was calling her every now and again or offering to take her to lunch with the bribery of food. But the former Rosa Chinensis would either refuse, or simply ignore his attempts to remain acquainted.

And now, here she was, all but offering her hand in tentative friendship again.

Slowly, Suguru's face relaxed into his typical nonchalant attitude – one, coincidentally, that Yumi had always found somewhat amusing – and nodded. "Very well. I'll call you next week. We'll do lunch. Catch up properly."

"Okay." Yumi said softly. The full weight of what she had just done hitting her. The two of them weren't 'okay', she knew that. Not by a long shot. But the first step was taken, and it was a start.

Suddenly, Yumi felt so very tired.

"Can I tempt you with one more dance? Or has Touko-chan or Aya-chan already claimed you?"

Yumi shook her head weakly. "No… um… well, yes. But I need to use the restroom first." For a moment, Suguru looked alarmed, but his stance slacked at Yumi's smile. "Don't worry. I'm fine. I just need some air."

"Very well." Suguru accepted that with a nod. "It was nice to share a dance with you, Yumi."

"You too." Yumi said, stepping back from the man. "Don't go around breaking too many hearts." And as Suguru rolled his eyes, Yumi slipped away.

Avoiding the rest of the dancers who had started again with the introduction of a new song, Yumi found the table she, Touko and Aya had eaten dinner at – which had been steak, much to Aya's pleasure – and reached down for the her purse, rifling through it until she found her smartphone. If she was going out to 'get some air', as she had put it, she may as well check for any messages.

As she wound her way through the tables in the ballroom towards the main door, she flicked on her phone's home screen and blinked in surprise.

_One Missed Call – Maya Sagara_

She blinked again, and still the notice flashed at her. Maya had called her, sometime during the evening, and not called back, or left a message, or even an SMS. That was odd. Usually, when you called someone and they weren't available, you left a message, or at least a text. But there was nothing.

Shrugging to herself, Yumi exited the room – nodding to the girl at the guest check-in booth along the way – and went in search of the restroom.

0 – 0 – 0

**Part 4**

The bathroom had been harder than she originally thought to find. Along the way Yumi got lost twice, and ended up asking for help from someone who looked as though they might work at the banquet hall. Luckily, the young-looking man did, and pointed her in the right direction.

Finally locating the women's restroom, Yumi pushed open the door and walked over to the sink, leaning on the countertop and heaving a great sigh.

What a night.

Not really knowing a better time to call Maya back, Yumi flicked her finger across her phone and brought up the call history, finding Maya's name on the list. Licking her lips, Yumi pressed the toggle and then held the phone to her ear. The line connected after a moment, and then beeped once, twice, a third time, and just when Yumi was about to give up and end the call, the four beep ended quickly and she heard, quite rapidly –

"Yumi-san! Hi! I didn't think you'd call me back."

Maya spoke quickly, as though she had rushed to pick up the phone from across the house. She sounded tired, and a little breathless. For a moment, Yumi feared that she had returned the woman's call as a bad time. Regardless, hearing her voice for the first time in more a week, at least, made Yumi smile. They had exchanged messages – almost daily – but there was a subtle difference in speaking to someone rather than always texting each other.

"Well, I did." Yumi said. "You called me, after all."

Maya chuckled, the soft, husky sound traveling through the earpiece of Yumi's phone into her ear. "I know, but after I called you I remembered you were at your party. And I didn't want to bother you so…" She made a small sound, like she couldn't decide to laugh or cough. "I hung up. Sorry."

Chuckling, Yumi leaned back so her hip rested on the countertop. "Don't worry. It's kind of a boring party anyway. If it wasn't for my sister being here with me, I wouldn't have bothered."

"Don't say that." Maya chided. "You make it sound as though getting out and meeting people is a chore."

Yumi snorted indelicately, but didn't comment. Instead, she changed topics. "What are you up to? I haven't heard from you since yesterday."

"Such a long time." Maya laughed, her tone teasing. "We may as well have had not spoken for years."

Feeling her face heat slightly from not only the older woman's tone, but also the fact that she was  _teasing_  her, Yumi murmured, "It seems like it sometimes."

"Aww…" Maya cooed. "She missed me. That makes me feel all warm and gooey inside."

At that, Yumi burst out laughing, and distantly heard Maya's laughter chiming into her ear. "Thanks, I needed that." She finally said as her chuckled ebbed.

"No problem at all." Maya said airily. "As for what I was doing when you called, or rather when I called you, I was painting."

"Painting?" Yumi asked, interested in the work the writer did. "For your new book, right?"

"Something like that." Came the reply. "In actuality, I don't think this has anything to do with the book. I just paint whatever I am thinking."

"And what are you thinking?" Yumi asked softly, her lips quirking up into a smile.

Maya hmm'd loudly into the phone, and then chuckled. "Right now I am thinking I need a shower and to finish off the Chinese I bought for lunch."

Grinning, Yumi rolled her eyes. She turned around and looked at herself in the mirror. The brown-eyed girl in the attractive dress looked back at her, her smile faltering somewhat, before shaking her head and turning back around. "That sounds good. We ate a little… but steak is a bit too much for me."

"Counting those calories, huh?" Maya snickered.

"Not really. Eating too much makes me tired. And I still wanted to practice dancing."

"Oh!" Maya exclaimed softly. "That's right! You danced a bit tonight, right? How was it?"

Dipping hear head slightly, Yumi made a small noise of agreement. "It was nice. My sister and I danced for a bit – she's brilliant at dancing, as usual. And then my –" Yumi suddenly paused, considering what to say.

If one were not to mince words, Suguru would have counted as an ex-boyfriend more than a friend. And, thinking back, ever since breaking up with him she had considered him, in her mind, to be her ex-boyfriend, regardless of their sexual preferences. It was simply how they treated each other.

But saying so to Maya, Yumi realized, might be sending off the wrong signals. From what she remembered about giving off the right signals, back when she was actively dating, it was important to actually let the other girl know she was interested in girls. If she told her she had been dancing with her ex-boyfriend, how would the older woman take that? Would she assume that she was straight? Maybe bi? Or, worse yet, actually willing to get back together with her ex.

The thought of getting back together with Suguru, even though they were just now finally attempting to be friends again, settled like a stone in her stomach.

Shuddering away that notion, Yumi pursed her lips in thought as to what to tell Maya. She wanted to seem available, not only as a friend, but also a girl.

"—and I danced for a bit with an old friend of mine." She finally said, banking on the older woman making her own assumption as to who Yumi's 'old friend' might be. "Come to think of it… I still owe my other sister a dance."

Maya giggled softly. "Just how many sisters do you have?"

Different faces flashed through Yumi's mind; Touko, Aya, Megumi… and as she recalled a photo of Megumi's own Soeur she had seen a couple years ago, but never met the girl in person, Yumi laughed. "A lot. It's complicated."

"Are you the oldest?"

"More or less." Yumi said. "There are a couple that are older than me… but they kind fell out of contact with us years ago." That much was true. Sachiko had gone off to England, and Youko had gotten herself married. "Someday I'll fill you in on how our family works."

"I'd like that." Maya said softly. Then, she took a breath and released it. "So – dancing. Are you all set to teach me?"

Grinning slightly, Yumi shrugged. "I think I can manage." The fact that the only practice Yumi got was being led, instead of leading, didn't need to be mentioned. "It's not that hard."

"It looks hard."

Snorting, Yumi pushed herself up on the countertop, her feet dangling off the ground by a few inches. "The hardest part about it, honestly, is the heels. Well, those and the dress. It depends on the kind. Some are better for dancing than others."

"Ooh! Are you all dolled up, Yumi-san?" Maya chirped excitedly.

Chucking, Yumi nodded. "Yea. My sisters insisted on it. Said they wanted to be out in public with me and actually not feel embarrassed. I'll admit I do like the dress, though."

"Oh, now you  _have_  to let me see!"

Yumi blinked, surprised. "Huh? How?"

"Take a selfie!" Maya commanded into Yumi's ear. "You're taking a break, right? Go ahead! I need to see you in a dress."

Already feeling her face heat up in embarrassment, Yumi curled in on herself self-consciously, as if anyone, even outside the room, could listen in. "What… right now?"

"Yes! Right now!" Maya snapped, then laughed. "Come on, I bet you look awesome!"

Grimacing to herself, Yumi shrugged. She  _did_  look good… she just was unsure about taking a picture of herself in a dress and sending it to the other woman.

As if sensing Yumi's unease, Maya's tone softened. "Hey… if it helps, I can send you one of me in return."

Yumi blinked again. "What… a selfie?"

"Yup!" Maya said. "Tit-for-tat. What do you say?"

It was tempting. It really was. Maya was very pretty, and Yumi knew it. Having a photo of her – which she didn't have yet – on Yumi's phone might actually be worth the embarrassment of taking a picture of herself in her dress… revealing though it was.

And then, suddenly filled with the desire to get a picture of Maya, Yumi smiled. "Fine. It's a deal. I'll send you a pic of me, then you send me one of you."

"Good deal." Maya giggled. "Make it a good one! Ja ne!" And with that, the line went dead.

For a long moment, Yumi stood there, her heart pounding in her chest as she tried, frantically, to calm down and remember  _how in the hell_  to take a selfie. From what she could recall, all you really needed was for you to be able to capture as much of yourself, or at least the part of your body that you wanted to photograph, in the picture. Easy.

Yumi eyed the bathroom mirror for a few seconds, considering whether or not to use her reflection to just capture her whole body… but then she decided against it.

Then, her smile returning, she had an idea.

Turning back around, Yumi hoisted herself up on the counter again, so her legs dangled off the floor. She tossed her purse aside so it wouldn't be seen in the picture, and then flicked her phone to the picture application. Then, taking a breath and swiping at her bangs to keep her eyes clear, she lifted her phone up high above her, pointing down towards her.

From her angle, she could see the photo as she focused and pointed the camera towards her, and couldn't help the blush that creeped past her cheeks to her ears as she clicked the shutter, capturing her selfie.

Then, slipping down off the counter, Yumi pulled up the picture she just took and took a closer look.

It was, if Yumi were to honestly say, pretty scandalous. It wasn't up there with the impromptu picture Yoshino had taken that day in the mall, but from the angle Yumi took the photo from, you could see down her entire front; the form-fitting, low-cut scoop of the dress barely covering her bust. Her thighs, pulled up on the countertop, were only partially covered by the flared skirt, and you could clearly see her pale legs slipping out from underneath the soft, goldenrod material of her dress, travelling down to her feet, laced up in a pair of strappy, yellow heels. The bright, almost flirty grin on her face just seemed to top the whole thing off.

Fuck… Yumi looked  _good_.

And, before she could even change her mind, she send the picture to Maya's phone.

It was barely two minutes later when Yumi's phone pinged with a message. Her finger's trembling, she opened the attachment from Maya, simply labeled:

;-) ~~~

"Gah—" Yumi muttered, her face heating up, if possible, even more.

The picture was taken at a similar angle to Yumi's. Maya was holding her phone up above her head and pointe down. Her hair, long and dark, was loose and clearly in need of a good brushing. Her face was smudged with blue and green paint – clearly evidence that gave credit to her earlier claim of painting, and her smile was wide and, if Yumi could honestly say, positively cheeky.

But it was her outfit that caught her attention. Or rather, her lack of outfit. She wore a t-shirt, that much was true, but it was loose and the neckline was stretched to almost slipping off her the woman's narrow shoulders. At the pictures angle, Yumi could clearly see down Maya's front and even see the outline a darkly colored bra barely containing her cleavage. Her legs, long and milky-white, were only partially covered in a pair of short cut-offs, also tattered, covered with paint and clearly saved for when the woman was working. She was also barefoot, her bright blue painted toenails sparkling even in the photo.

As Yumi stared at the picture, trying her best to keep the drool from leaking out of her mouth, her phone buzzed again with a message. She fumbled with the toggle and opened it, only belatedly realizing it was a follow-up message from the very same woman who had sent her this… this –

Photographic treasure.

_Cute? It's messy Maya~ ww_

Swallowing, Yumi typed out her response.

_Super cute. I like Messy Maya!_

It was only moments later Maya shot back another message.

_I love your dress— so sexy! Rawr!_

_Have fun!_

_Messy Maya ~~:-3_

Blinking rapidly, Yumi's hand went slack, her phone sliding from her fingers on the countertop. Her heart thumped in her chest, and her mouth was dry.

Holy… crap. Now Yumi was sure of it. Maya had definitely been flirting with her – and send her an… incredibly sexy picture. All good things, pointing in a very good direction. And if she played her cards right, she would be spending more time with Maya in the coming days, teaching the woman how to dance.

Things were looking up.

A few minutes later, a wide grin splitting her face like never before, Yumi left the bathroom in search of Aya. She had a dance or two to collect on, and if she asked nicely, Aya might even let her lead.

She had practicing to do, after all

0 – 0 – 0

_End of Chapter 13_


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